Israeli jets bombarded Houthi rebel targets across Yemen on Thursday in response to drone and missile attacks on Israel by the Iran-backed terror group.
The Israeli military said its warplanes struck “Houthi terror regime” targets at Sana’a airport, as well as military infrastructure at the Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power stations.
Air strikes also hit military infrastructure in the Al-Hudaydah, Salif, and Ras Issa ports on the western coast, it added.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, the Houthi rebels were using the sites to “transfer Iranian weapons to the region and for the entry of senior Iranian officials”. It added: “This is a further example of the Houthis’ exploitation of civilian infrastructure for military purposes.”
Three people were killed in the strikes, Al Masirah, a Houthi-run TV station, reported. It said two of these deaths were at Sana’a airport, and the other was at Ras Issa.
People were filmed running through the airport’s terminal while an air raid siren blared and a large smoke plume billowed above a building.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the chief of the World Health Organisation, said he was in Sana’a airport during the attack.
He said: “As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport came under aerial bombardment. One of our plane’s crew members was injured. At least two people were reported killed at the airport.
“The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge – just a few meters from where we were – and the runway were damaged.”
The airstrikes were approved by Lt Gen Herzi Halevi, the IDF chief of staff, Israel Katz, the defence minister, and Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, the IDF said.
It is the fourth time Israel has launched airstrikes against Houthi infrastructure in Yemen since the group began launching missiles at Israel in October last year.
Earlier this week, Mr Katz said Israel was preparing to “strike hard” at the Houthis and vowed to “decapitate” the group’s leadership.
On Wednesday, Mr Netanyahu said: “The Houthis will also learn what Hamas, Hezbollah, the Assad regime and others have learned, and this will also take time. This lesson will be learned across the Middle East.”
The Houthis are the last of Iran’s proxies in the Middle East still attacking Israel in solidarity with terror groups in Gaza. Iran has supported the Houthis financially and militarily for years, providing its ballistic missiles.
Pressure has been growing on Mr Netanyahu’s government after four Houthi ballistic missile attacks on Israel in the past week, one of which, south of Tel Aviv, injured 16 people.
Benny Gantz, a former Israeli defence minister and the leader of the National Unity party, called on the Israeli government to attack Iran directly, saying: “The solution for Yemen is in Iran. We must not be satisfied with retaliatory actions against the Houthis — it is time to take care of our heads.”
Credit: X/ @Bashareport
Israeli media reported that David Barnea, the director of the Mossad intelligence agency, also favoured a direct attack on Iran to stop the Houthis.
“We need to go head-on against Iran. If we only attack the Houthis, it’s not certain that we’ll be able to stop them,” Mr Barnea told security officials, according to Channel 13, an Israeli broadcaster.
But Mr Netanyahu reportedly opposes an attack on Iran, which he said would be dealt with at “an appropriate time”.
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