A missile launched from Yemen struck a residential area of Tel Aviv early Saturday morning, injuring sixteen people, according to Israeli military and emergency services. This marks the second such attack in just a few days, significantly escalating tensions in the already volatile region.
The Israeli military confirmed its failure to intercept the incoming projectile, which caused meaningful damage to buildings and forced numerous residents to evacuate their homes in the pre-dawn hours. The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen swiftly claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that their target was a “military target of the Israeli enemy” and that a ballistic missile was used.
The Houthi’s actions are part of an ongoing campaign of missile and drone attacks against Israel, launched in solidarity with Palestinians as the conflict in Gaza began over a year ago. While many previous attacks have been successfully intercepted by Israeli defense systems, this latest incident highlights the persistent threat and the rebels’ evolving capabilities.
Israel has responded to previous houthi attacks with airstrikes targeting various locations in Yemen, including ports and energy infrastructure in Houthi-controlled areas. ”Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in central Israel, one projectile launched from Yemen was identified and unsuccessful interception attempts were made,” the Israeli military stated via its Telegram channel.
Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel’s national emergency medical service, reported that all sixteen individuals injured in the attack sustained only minor injuries, primarily from shattered glass. “I was at home and heard a loud explosion. I promptly went to the scene and saw significant blast damage to nearby buildings,” one MDA medic recounted in a statement. “MDA teams provided medical care to 16 individuals who were mildly injured by glass shards from shattered windows in nearby buildings due to the impact of the strike,” the statement added.
Eyewitness accounts paint a vivid picture of the event. One resident described hearing a missile alert just before 4:00 AM, followed by “a big ball of fire in the sky,” adding, “I didn’t even manage to get up and get dressed to go out.” Another resident, whose apartment was damaged, recounted, “We were very lucky because we didn’t have time to get to a safe place. Within seconds there was a boom. We managed to get out and so we were not hurt.”
The Houthi rebels, in their statement claiming responsibility, vowed to continue their attacks ”until the aggression stops and the siege on the Gaza Strip is lifted.” This latest incident follows a similar attack just two days prior, which damaged a school building in Israel. Israel maintains that missile was intercepted, and the school damage resulted from falling debris.
Israel’s response to the attack included airstrikes on several Houthi sites in Yemen, notably including Sanaa, the rebel-held capital—a first in this conflict. “The Israeli enemy targeted ports in Hodeida and power stations in sanaa, and the Israeli aggression resulted in the martyrdom of nine civilian martyrs,” Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Huthi stated in a televised address. Following the retaliatory strikes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stern warning: “After Hamas, Hezbollah, and the (Bashar al-) Assad regime in Syria, the Huthis are almost the last remaining arm of Iran’s axis of evil,” he declared. “The Huthis are learning and will learn the hard way, that those who strike Israel will pay a very heavy price for it.”
This escalation follows a pattern of increasing tensions in the region. In December, a Houthi drone exploded in Yavne, Israel, causing no casualties. A previous Houthi drone attack in Tel Aviv in July resulted in the death of an Israeli civilian,prompting retaliatory strikes on the port of Hodeidah. The Huthis’ continued targeting of shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has also led to retaliatory actions by U.S. and British forces.
