Gemini Cooperation will suspend two Mediterranean-Saudi Arabia shuttle services in mid-May, adding to the list of routes halted last month due to the Middle East conflict, reported London's S&P Global.

The affected loops are the JED2/JD2 service calling at Tangier, Port Said East, and Jeddah, and the JED3/JD3 service calling at Port Said East, Aqaba, and Jeddah. Hapag-Lloyd stated that the move consolidates capacity into alternative services to maintain reliable coverage.

Maersk indicated that cargo from the suspended shuttles will be shifted to the AE19/SE4 mainline service launched on 13 March. That route links Jeddah with Gemini's hubs at Damietta in Egypt and Tanger Med in Morocco, continuing to Asia with calls at Tanjung Pelepas, Shanghai, Ningbo, and Busan.

The last sailings will be the 3,800 TEU Merkur Ocean on May 10 under the JED3/JD3 loop and the 5,470 TEU GSL Tinos on May 11 under the JED2/JD2 loop, the carriers said.

Gemini partners had already suspended several services last month, including the Asia-Middle East FM1/AGX, the Europe-Middle East ME11/IMX, and India-Gulf shuttles. Other services stopped calling at Dubai's Jebel Ali port after rocket and drone attacks raised risks for shipping.