Israel strikes Houthi targets in Yemen after missile attack

Israel has said its fighter jets conducted a series of strikes against military targets in Yemen belonging to the Iran-backed Houthi movement in response to missile and drone attacks.

An Israeli military spokesman said the targets included Red Sea ports and energy infrastructure in the capital Sanaa.

Houthi-run Al Masirah TV reported that nine people were killed in the port of Salif and the Ras Issa oil terminal, which are both in Hudaydah province.

The strikes came hours after a missile fired from Yemen was partially intercepted over central Israel. Part of the missile still hit a school in Ramat Gan on the edge of Tel Aviv, destroying a building.

The Houthis, who control north-western Yemen, began attacking Israel and international shipping shortly after the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, saying they were acting in solidarity with Palestinians.

Israel’s military says about 400 missiles and drones have since been launched at the country from Yemen, most of which have been intercepted.

In the early hours of Thursday, Israelis in Tel Aviv and the surrounding area were sent rushing to bomb shelters as an incoming missile was shot down by air defences.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said a missile was fired from Yemen towards Israeli territory and that it was partially intercepted.

Shrapnel fell in central Israel, including the missile warhead which directly hit a school in the Ramat Efal neighbourhood of Ramat Gan, it added. No injuries were reported.

Two hours after the attack, the IDF announced that its fighter jets had struck Houthi military targets on Yemen’s west coast and inland.

According to Houthi-run Al Masirah, seven people were killed by an Israeli strike on the Red Sea port of Salif, while two people were killed and one injured at the nearby Ras Issa oil terminal. Another two were reportedly injured at the port of Hudaydah, just to the south.

The TV channel also said that the power stations in Haiz and Dhahban, to the south and north of Sanaa, had been struck.

The director of the General Electricity Corporation, Meshaal al-Rifi, was cited as saying that the local electricity supply had been affected by damage to electricity distribution stations and fuel tanks.

“The Houthis have been carrying out attacks against Israel in violation of international law, and the Houthi regime is a threat to peace and security in the region,” IDF spokesman…