Israel launched strikes at Houthi targets in Yemen after the Houthi militants fired missiles at Israel over the past two days, marking a fresh exchange in another front of the regional conflict.
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that Israel would strike at foes no matter the distance.
“Our message is clear – for us, no place is too far,” Gallant said in a statement issued by his office after he monitored the strikes from an air force command and control room about 2,000km from Yemen.
The Israeli military said in a statement that dozens of aircraft, including fighter jets, attacked power plants and a sea port at the Ras Issa and Hodeidah ports.
The strikes caused power outages in most parts of the port city of Hodeidah, residents said.
“Over the past year, the Houthis have been operating under the direction and funding of Iran and in cooperation with Iraqi militias in order to attack the state of Israel, undermine regional stability and disrupt global freedom of navigation,” the statement said.
The sites targeted were used by the Houthis, who seized the Yemeni capital Sanaa in 2014, to “transfer Iranian weaponry to the region and supplies for military needs”, the statement said.
The Houthi-controlled Al-Masirah station reported that Israeli strikes targeted “the ports of Hodeidah and Ras Issa” as well as two power stations after previously announcing “Israeli aggression on Hodeida”.
Yemen’s Houthi militants have fired missiles and drones at Israel repeatedly in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians, since the Gaza war began with a Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October.
In July, Israel also hit Hodeida port, causing what a port official said was at least $20 million (€17 million) in damage, after a Houthi drone strike penetrated Israel’s air defenses and killed a civilian in Tel Aviv.
In their latest attack, the Houthis said they had launched a ballistic missile yesterday towards the Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, which Israel said it intercepted.
Israel also intercepted another Houthi missile on Friday.
The Houthi movement earlier mourned Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, its ally in an Iran-backed alliance opposing Israel, following his death in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.
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