Israel struck Sanaa, killing at least two people and wounding dozens, following a Houthi drone attack. Photo / Getty Images
Israel struck Sanaa, killing at least two people and wounding dozens, following a Houthi drone attack. Photo / Getty Images
Israel has struck Sanaa, killing at least two people and wounding dozens more, Yemen’s Houthis said, after the rebels launched a drone attack on southern Israel.
Israeli forces struck several Houthi-linked targets in the rebel-held capital, Israeli officials said, warning of more attacks to come. Houthi media said the targetsincluded a detention facility.
AFP correspondents in Sanaa heard explosions and saw plumes of smoke rising from three locations in the Sanaa area, in the latest retaliatory attack since the Houthis began targeting Israel after the Gaza war.
The Israeli “brutality ... resulted in a number of civilian casualties”, said Houthi health ministry spokesman Anees Alasbahi, providing a preliminary toll of “two martyrs and 48 wounded”.
The Houthis’ Al-Masirah television channel said, citing a security source, that Israel “targeted one of the (security and intelligence) service’s correctional facilities, which houses a number of prisoners and detainees”.
Al-Masirah earlier said that a power station and two residential neighbourhoods had been targeted, sharing pictures that showed low-rise buildings with bombed-out windows.
One picture showed twisted metal and pieces of concrete filled the street as people looked on, with another photo showing people on the roof of a badly damaged building.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a post on X that Israel had “dealt a powerful blow to numerous terror targets of the Houthi terror organisation in Sanaa”.
An Israeli military statement said the targets included the Houthis’ general staff headquarters, other security and intelligence sites including some used to store weapons and “plan and execute” attacks on Israel.
It added that the rebels’ “military public relations headquarters” was also targeted.
Katz said the Israeli forces had “struck several military camps ... eliminated dozens of Houthi terror operatives, and destroyed stockpiles of UAVs [drones] and weaponry”.
The military statement said Israel would “conduct additional offensive operations against the Houthi regime in the near future”.
Failed interception
The Israeli strikes on Sanaa came moments before Al-Masirah began broadcasting rebel leader Abdul Malik al-Huthi’s weekly pre-recorded speech.
The impact sites were cordoned off, an AFP correspondent said. The Houthi authorities have previously warned Yemenis against publishing footage of locations hit in strikes, describing it as “a service to the enemy”.
On Wednesday, a drone attack claimed by the Houthis struck the southern Israeli tourist resort of Eilat after failed attempts by Israel’s air defences to intercept it.
Rescuers reported 22 wounded including two in serious condition.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Katz warned of a severe response.
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels began targeting Israel with missiles and drones, as well as attacking vessels they deem linked to the country, after the 2023 start of the Gaza war.
Israeli airstrikes on Yemen's capital Sana'a and Al-Jawf province. Photo / Getty Images
The Houthis say they act in solidarity with Palestinians.
Israel, in response, has carried out strikes in Yemen, mainly targeting infrastructure such as ports, power stations and Sanaa’s international airport.
In August, Israel assassinated the head of the Houthi Government Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser al-Rahawi together with other senior officials.
Earlier this month, Israeli strikes killed 46 people, according to Houthi authorities.
The dead include journalists working for the September 26 and al-Yaman newspapers, who were killed in an attack on Sanaa that targeted the Houthis’ military media operation.
