Waterway is a crucial source of foreign currency for Cairo, but shipping firms have been taking alternative routes since Iran-backed rebels started attacks in solidarity with Hamas

The Suez Canal’s annual revenue dropped by almost a quarter in its latest financial year as some shippers switched to alternative routes to avoid attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Osama Rabie, the head of the Egyptian canal’s authority said on Thursday revenues fell to $7.2 billion in its 2023-24 financial year from $9.4 billion the year before.

Since November, the Houthis have been attacking commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean to show support for Hamas in the war with Israel started by the Palestinian terror group’s October 7 onslaught.

The attacks have forced many major shipping firms to suspend passage through the Red Sea, which usually carries about 10 percent of global trade, and divert their vessels thousands of miles around Africa.

Rabie said the number of ships using the canal fell to 20,148 in 2023-24 from 25,911 the year before. The financial year in Egypt runs from the beginning of July to the end of June of the following year.

The Suez Canal is a key source of foreign currency for Egypt, and authorities have been trying to boost its revenues in recent years, including via an expansion in 2015.

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