Despite yesterday's wide-ranging Israel aerial assault on Yemen, the Houthis have hit back - showing they remain undeterred in their willingness to attack Israel - having launched an overnight ballistic missile on Tel Aviv.
The missile was reportedly intercepted by air defenses before it entered Israeli airspace, but a Houthi spokesman claimed that Ben Gurion international airport was targeted in a significant escalation. The Houthis even claim it was hit.
Times of Israel notes that the population of central Israel has been on edge: "For the fifth night in the last eight days, sirens sounded in large swathes of central Israel overnight Thursday-Friday, after another ballistic missile attack by Yemen’s Houthis."
The same report indicated that some 20 people were hurt amid the panic and evacuations, with 18 of those slightly injured while rushing to bomb shelters and two suffering anxiety attacks.
The Houthi statement said that "the missile succeeded in reaching its target despite the enemy’s censorship, and the operation resulted in casualties and the cessation of navigation at the airport."
But the Israeli military confirmed that there were no strikes which hit the airport or its vicinity. A drone was also reportedly sent from Yemen but didn't appear to cause damage.
Despite Israel stepping up its attacks on Yemen, including Netanyahu's recent vow to hunt down Houthi leadership, the Houthis have vowed to not stop the attacks "until the aggression on Gaza stops and the siege is lifted."
Days ago, Defense Minister Israel Katz said that the leaders of the Yemeni group have made themselves targets. Taking them out will now be a top priority for the Israeli military.
"Just as we took care of Sinwar in Gaza, Haniyeh in Tehran and Nasrallah in Beirut, we will deal with the heads of the Houthis in Sana’a or anywhere in Yemen," Katz has said in the Tuesday comments, making reference to the slain leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas.
"We will act both against their infrastructure and against them to remove the threat," he pledged while inspecting an Arrow air defense system battery which just intercepted the latest Houthi missile attack.
He also again called out Iran, warning that "whoever sponsors the Houthi terror in Hodeida or Sana’a will pay the full price." Washington has for years documented Tehran's support to the group, which has included advanced missiles and drone technology. This has allowed the threat out of Yemen to grow significantly.
Last Saturday saw one of the biggest Houthi strikes to date, coming in the form of a reported hypersonic ballistic missile which hit Tel Aviv, leaving 16 people injured. And Tuesday morning saw another Houthi missile launch on Israel, which at that point had marked the third such attack in less than a week.
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