“We all went into the shelters as soon as the sirens were activated,” Pinchas Idan, union boss at the Airport Authorities, told Yedioth Achronot.
By Rachel Avraham
At around 9:22am on Sunday morning, the bomb sirens were sounded in Netanya, Abu Ghosh, Bat Yam, Beit Yehoshua, Bnai Brak, Even Yehuda, Herzliya, Holon, Hod Ha-Sharon, Modiin, Kfar Chabad, Kfar Saba, Petach Tikva, Ramat Gan, Ramla, Rishon Le-Tzion, Tel Aviv, Jaffa, and a variety of other places across Central Israel, Judea and Samaria and the greater Jerusalem area. The Houthi missile struck an area near Ben-Gurion International Airport.
The blast occurred in a grove of trees alongside an access road close to the airport’s main Terminal 3, several hundred yards from the airport control tower, the Times of Israel reported. The military said it made several attempts to intercept the missile but failed to shoot down the projectile, the Times of Israel added. “An impact was identified in the area of Ben Gurion Airport,” it said. Sources in the IDF said that they don’t know whether it was a direct crash from the missile or whether it was fragments from the missile that crashed in the area, the Jerusalem Post reported.
“We all went into the shelters as soon as the sirens were activated,” Pinchas Idan, union boss at the Airport Authorities, told Yedioth Achronot. “We heard a loud explosion. It fell near the planes. We were lucky because an aircraft was in the air.” The incident led to a temporary halt of takeoffs and landings for about an hour, road closures in the area, and the cancellation of several flights, Israel Hayom reported.
Air India has canceled its flights through May 6, including flight BA405 on May 7, which had to circle in the air during a missile alert, Israel Hayom added. According to the report, flights by Air Europa, Austrian Airlines, and Brussels Airlines, have also been canceled.
Azerbaijan Airlines temporarily canceled their flights, Israel Hayom reported. According to the report, Delta’s flight from New York on the day of the attack has been canceled, along with today’s flight from Israel to New York. Italy’s ITA Airways has canceled all flights through May 6, including flights AZ809 and AZ815 on May 7, Israel Hayom added. According to the report, the Lufthansa Group—which includes Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, and Eurowings—has suspended all flights to and from Israel through May 6.
Israel Hayom added that British Airways has also canceled flights through Tuesday. According to the report, Air France passengers were removed from a plane in Paris. The report added that Wizz Air has suspended all flights until Tuesday morning. Iberia Express canceled their flights on the day of the attack. According to the report, Ryanair flights to Paphos, Turin, Vienna, and Thessaloniki were also canceled. Ethiopian Airlines, however, announced it is continuing to operate flights to Israel as usual, Israel Hayom stressed.
Yedioth Achronot reported that at least eight people were hurt in the blast. Magen David Adom medics and paramedics provided medical treatment and evacuated casualties to Shamir–Assaf Harofeh and Sheba–Tel Hashomer hospitals, Israel Hayom reported. According to the report, a man in his 50s was in light to moderate condition, and a 54-year-old woman sustained light injuries from the blast. The report added that a 32-year-old woman was injured while making her way to a shelter, and five others sustained similar injuries. According to Israel Hayom, two people suffering from anxiety were being treated at the scene.
The attack marked the first time a Houthi missile had impacted within the grounds of the airport, the Times of Israel reported. According to the report, a Hezbollah missile hit a parking area on the airport’s perimeter last November.
Following the Houthi missile strike, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video that Israel has acted against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen in the past and will act again in the future, the Jerusalem Post reported. “This isn’t a one-and-done, but there will be some big hits,” the prime minister continued. Since US President Donald Trump took office, Israel has refrained from attacking Yemen, leaving it to the Americans to handle. However, now this policy is set to change.
Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared remarks made by US President Donald Trump about a month and a half ago regarding the need to exact a price from the Houthis, emphasizing that Israel will strike not only the Houthis but also their backers in Iran, Arutz Sheva reported. “President Trump is absolutely right! Attacks by the Houthis emanate from Iran. Israel will respond to the Houthi attack against our main airport AND, at a time and place of our choosing, to their Iranian terror master,” Netanyahu wrote.
The Houthi military spokesperson in Yemen, Yahya Saree, threatened on Sunday evening to impose a “comprehensive aerial blockade on Israel,” following the terror group’s launch of a missile that struck Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday morning, Arutz Sheva reported. According to the report, he warned the move will be carried out “through repeated strikes on airports, primarily Ben Gurion Airport.” Additionally, Arutz Sheva reported that he called on international airlines to cease flying to Israel.
Senior Houthi official Mohammed al-Bukhaiti told Arab media that “the strike on Ben-Gurion Airport is proof of our ability to target fortified sites inside Israel. We have demonstrated our capacity to strike at the military prestige of the US, Britain, and Israel. There are no red lines in our confrontation with the Zionist entity, the US, and Britain.”
Photo from Manuel Schneider: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Gurion_Airport#/media/File:012_2010-09-04_13-44-43_Ben_Gurion_Airport.JPG
