Yemen’s Houthi rebels have launched ballistic missiles on various Israel targets, including in the Red Sea city of Eilat, the group’s military spokesperson has said.
The launch came “after 24 hours of another military operation by drones on the same Israeli targets,” the spokesperson said on Tuesday.
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Houthis have fired missiles, drones at Israel. How big a threat are they?
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Analysis: Houthis declare war on Israel, but their real target is elsewhere
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Yemen’s Houthis say they launched ballistic missiles, drones at Israel
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The Israeli military said that it intercepted a missile near the Red Sea.
Israel said it used its “Arrow” aerial defence system to shoot down a missile on Tuesday after sirens sounded in the port city of Eilat. Israel says that the projectile did not enter its territory, and did not say who shot it.
Earlier, the leader of Yemen’s Houthis said that his group would continue to launch attacks against Israel.
“Our eyes are open to constantly monitor and search for any Israeli ship in the Red Sea, especially in Bab al-Mandab, and near Yemeni regional waters,” Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, leader of the Iran-backed group, said.
The Houthis have launched several missile and drone attacks against Israel since October 7, when Hamas fighters from the besieged Gaza Strip carried out an attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people, according to Israeli authorities.
Since the Hamas attack, Israel has bombarded Gaza and launched a ground invasion of the territory. More than 11,200 people have been killed in the Israeli assault, including more than 4,600 children, according to Palestinian authorities.
The war in Gaza has sent tensions soaring throughout the region, with international organisations and political leaders warning of a potential wider war across the region.
The Iran-backed Lebanese armed group Hezbollah has exchanged fire with Israeli forces across the Lebanon-Israel border, and Iran-backed armed groups have targeted US forces in Syria and Iraq. The United States has carried out strikes in Syria in response.
The Houthis have emerged as a major player in the Arabian Peninsula, withstanding efforts to dislodge them by a Saudi-led intervention in Yemen that began in 2015 with the support of the US.
The Saudi bombardment was criticised for contributing to a humanitarian catastrophe in the country and inflicting many civilian casualties, while the Houthis eventually expanded their control over areas of northern Yemen.
The war in Yemen has reached an uneasy stalemate, with fighting at a standstill even as both sides failed to renew a United Natiions-backed truce that expired in October.
Israeli authorities say missile intercepted near Eilat after Houthi leader earlier promised to continue attacks.
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