Houthis say attacks target Ben Gurion Airport, Ashdod, Eilat ports, power plant in Ashkelon city
Yemen's Houthi group claimed missile and drone attacks on several sites inside Israel on Monday, in response to Israeli airstrikes on the country.
In a televised statement, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said hypersonic ballistic missiles were launched at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, Ashdod Port, and a power plant in the southern city of Ashkelon.
The Houthis also fired eight drones at Eilat Port in southern Israel, he added.
“The missiles and drones successfully hit their targets as the (Israeli) interceptor missiles failed to confront them,” Saree said.
No details were yet available about damage from the Houthi attacks, which came hours after Israeli fighter jets carried out airstrikes on the Red Sea ports of Al-Hudaydah, Ras Issa, and al-Salif, a nearby power station, and the cargo ship Galaxy Leader in Yemen.
Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, for his part, said that Israel was not aware of the capabilities of missiles manufactured by the Houthis.
“We haven't known that the Houthis were making missiles with a range of 2,000 km against Israel in huge underground bunkers,” Smotrich said in statements carried by Israeli Channel 12.
The Houthis have intensified missile and drone strikes on Israel since the Israeli military resumed attacks on Gaza in March after two months of a shaky ceasefire.
Since November 2023, the group has also targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea in support of Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 57,400 people have been killed in an Israeli onslaught.
