As Israelis ate Shabbat dinner, the Houthis fired a missile at Central Israel on Friday night, hitting the home of an 85-year-old woman near Lod.
By Rachel Avraham
At 8:59pm on Friday night, as Israelis across the Jewish state gathered for Shabbat dinner, the bomb sirens were sounded in Netanya, Airport City, Bat Yam, Beit Yehoshua, Bnei Brak, Even Yehuda, Herzliya, Hod HaSharon, Holon, Modiin, Kfar Chabad, Kfar Kassem, Kfar Shmaryahu, Latrun, Modiin Illit, Petach Tikva, Ramat Gan, Ramla, Rishon LeTzion, Tel Aviv, Jaffa and many other places across Central Israel.
According to a report in Arutz Sheva, the IDF on Friday evening identified the launching of a missile from Yemen towards Israeli territory. According to the report, the IDF Spokespersons Unit stated that the aerial defense systems are operating to intercept the threat and the public is requested to follow the Home Front Command’s guidelines.”
There are reports that claim that the missile disintegrated mid-air. Shortly after 9:10pm on Friday night, the IDF Spokespersons Unit stated: “Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile was launched from Yemen towards Central Israel. Attempts were made to intercept the missile and the results of the interception are under review. Sirens were sounded in accordance with protocol.”
At around 9:33pm, the IDF confirmed that “an initial review suggests that the missile most likely fragmented mid-air. During the incident, several attempts were made to intercept the missile by the areal defense systems.” The missile landed in the yard of Ilana Hatoumi’s house in Ginton, a small farming community near Lod, shattering windows and cutting electricity, Yedioth Achronot reported on Shabbat.
According to the report, Ilana Hatoumi is 85-years-old. “I was sitting in the shelter, I heard a boom, everything exploded — and that’s it,” Hatoumi told Ynetnews. “The windows shattered. We’re fine, I’m healthy. Nothing happened, everything can be fixed. It’s only property damage.”
Her daughter, Shira, said the family was fortunate Hatoumi heard the siren and went into the safe room. “The whole house shook and everything shattered. Thank God she’s fine, a bit shaken but fine. She’s a strong woman,” she said. Magen David Adom stated that it did not receive any report of physical injuries, except for individuals who were injured while heading to shelter.
Departures and landings at Ben Gurion Airport were briefly halted, Yedioth Achronot reported. A senior Houthi terror official, Nasser al-Din Amer, claimed the missile split into multiple warheads. Police said bomb disposal experts were working at the scene and urged residents to stay away from areas where fragments fell, Yedioth Achronot reported. “It’s a great miracle there were no casualties and that she followed the guidelines,” said Assaf Iluz, security chief of the Hevel Modi’in Regional Council.
According to Arutz Sheva, the missile from Yemen was fired just hours after a drone from Yemen was successfully intercepted in the Gaza vicinity area. Earlier in the day, the drone set off sirens in several communities near the border with the Gaza Strip and Egypt, the Times of Israel reported. According to the report, the military said it made several attempts to shoot it down before successfully intercepting it.
The Houthis took responsibility for both the missile and drone attack, the Times of Israel reported. Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 71 ballistic missiles and at least 23 drones at Israel, the Times of Israel reported. According to the report, several of the missiles have fallen short.
Earlier on Friday, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Friday that “gates of hell will soon open over Hamas murderers and rapists until they agree to release all hostages and disarm,” confirming that the Israeli government rubberstamped the military’s plans for an offensive on Gaza City, I24 News reported. According to the report, in the wake of Israel preparing to invade Gaza City, an intensification in rocket fire is expected in the coming days from the Houthis and other forces loyal to Iran.
