Millions of Israelis were forced to run to bomb shelters on Thursday night, after the Houthis fired a missile at Central Israel and Jerusalem.
By Rachel Avraham
The IDF detected the launch of a missile towards Israel on Thursday night, Arutz Sheva reported. “The IDF has identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israeli territory. Aerial defense systems are operating to intercept the threat,” the military stated. According to the report, sirens sounded in parts of Jerusalem and central Israel. The IDF later confirmed that the missile was successfully intercepted.
The IDF said the projectile was intercepted minutes after the alerts began at 10:39 p.m. Yedioth Achronot reported. According to the report, flights bound for Ben Gurion Airport were briefly delayed in the air until the incident ended. By 10:53 p.m., the Home Front Command declared the situation over and told residents they could leave shelters.
Sirens were heard across wide swaths of the country, including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Bnei Brak, Bat Yam, Givatayim, Herzliya, Holon, Yehud-Monosson, Petah Tikva, Kiryat Ono, Ramat Gan, Ramat Hasharon, Elad, Shoham, Kiryat Malachi, Karnei Shomron and Beit Shemesh. Despite the widespread alerts, emergency medical service said it received no distress calls.
The launch came in apparent retaliation for an Israeli air operation earlier in the day in Sanaa, where the military said more than 65 munitions were dropped on seven Houthi command and intelligence sites in the deepest strike yet carried out in Yemen, Yedioth Achronot reported. According to the report, the raid, dubbed Operation Passing Package, targeted the Houthis’ general staff headquarters and security apparatus facilities, the IDF said.
The Houthis’ Al-Masirah television reported that the “Israeli aggression” on Sanaa came moments before it began broadcasting a weekly pre-recorded speech by the terror group’s leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the Times of Israel reported. According to the report, the Houthis said the strikes killed at least eight people and wounded more than 140.
According to the report, Thursday’s strike marked the 19th time that Israel has attacked the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. Most of the strikes have been carried out by Israeli Air Force fighter jets and drones, though some have been conducted by Israeli Navy missile boats, the Times of Israel reported.
We have now delivered a powerful strike on numerous terror targets of the Houthi terror organization in Sana’a as part of Operation ‘Passing Package.’ Air Force aircraft attacked several military camps, including a camp of the Houthi General Staff, eliminated dozens of Houthi terror operatives, and destroyed stockpiles of UAVs and weaponry,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said. According to the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Israel has struck similar infrastructure in the recent past, but the emphasis on UAV-related targets is likely in response to the recent Houthi attacks on Eilat.
According to the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, the Association of Mothers of Abductees, a Yemeni human rights organization that has advocated for arbitrarily detained individuals, issued an appeal expressing “deep concern and strong condemnation over reports that the Security and Intelligence Prison and its surrounding areas, along with other detention facilities in Sana’a, were subjected to heavy airstrikes this afternoon, Thursday, September 25.” Individuals, arbitrarily and illegally detained by the Houthis, including potentially humanitarian workers, according to Yemen expert Mohammed al Basha, are held in prisons in compounds run by the Security & Intelligence Services. The Association of Mothers of Abductees’ statement also lamented the lack of information that families have about their loved ones’ well-being. The Houthis routinely prevent families from communicating with detained individuals.
The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies reported that the Houthis have launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel, commercial shipping, and US forces, claiming these attacks are carried out in solidarity with Gazans during Israel’s war in the territory following the Hamas-led terror attacks on October 7, 2023.
In July 2024, a Houthi drone struck Tel Aviv, killing one and injuring 19, the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies added. According to the report, the Houthis have also attempted to enforce naval and air blockades of Israel by frequently launching missiles at Ben Gurion International Airport and attacking merchant ships connected to Israel. The United States, Israel, and the United Kingdom have all carried out airstrikes against the Houthis in response to the group’s Red Sea terrorism that threatens global shipping.
Photo from WION: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPlruYsPcoY
