U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced a new maritime task force to protect commercial vessels traveling through the Red Sea from attacks by Houthi rebels.

“The recent escalation in reckless Houthi attacks originating from Yemen threatens the free flow of commerce, endangers innocent mariners, and violates international law,” Austin said in a statement December 18. “This is an international challenge that demands collective action.”

Austin said the countries involved in the new task force — dubbed Operation Prosperity Guardian — include the U.S., the U.K., Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles and Spain. It will be run under the umbrella of a pre-existing grouping in the region, the Combined Maritime Forces, and the leadership of its Task Force 153, which focuses on the Red Sea.

The attacks in the Red Sea, which handles about 12% of world trade as a key waterway for goods and energy, have emerged as a fresh threat to global supply chains and an extension of the hostilities in Gaza.

Austin, speaking at a briefing in Tel Aviv earlier December 18 with his Israeli counterpart, said he would convene a virtual ministerial meeting December 19 to discuss ways to protect ships in the Red Sea.

Iran-backed Houthis have claimed repeated attacks in the Red Sea on commercial vessels in the last several days, incidents that the U.S. and allies say are intended to provoke a wider Middle East War even as Israel continues its drive to destroy Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Houthi leader Mohammed Al-Bukhaiti said the group has had indirect communication with the US and other countries via Oman.

Al-Bukhaiti said one message received by the Houthis had been an offer to seek a peaceful end the conflict in Yemen in exchange for stopping attacks in the Red Sea. He said the group rejected that idea.

Oil prices gained December 18 after BP Plc said it’s pausing all shipments through the Red Sea and Norwegian energy company Equinor ASA said it’s diverting vessels away from the region. Brent crude futures rose as much as 3.9% in London trading. The disruption also impacted the European natural gas market, with benchmark prices jumping as much as 13% in Amsterdam. Liquefied natural gas tankers often travel between the Middle East and Europe via the Red Sea and Suez Canal.