The Israeli military said Sunday that a long-range missile fired by Yemen’s Houthis struck central Israel.
The missile traveled over 1,200 miles from Yemen, demonstrating a significant long-range capability from the Houthis. The Israeli military initially said the missile landed in an uninhabited area and that it exploded in the air but was not destroyed by Israel’s air defense systems.
The missile sparked a fire near the Ben Gurion International Airport. No casualties were reported in the strike, but an Israeli official said nine people were injured as they were moving toward shelters after alarms sounded.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, fired a “new hypersonic missile” that traveled to central Israel in less than 12 minutes.
The Israeli military denied that the missile was hypersonic and said it’s currently examining the debris to determine its type and capability. The military insisted that none of its adversaries, including Iran, possess hypersonic missiles.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Yemen would pay a “heavy price” for the missile attack. In July, a Houthi drone hit Tel Aviv, killing one civilian, and Israel responded by launching major airstrikes on the Yemeni port of Hodeidah, which killed seven civilians and caused $20 million worth of damage to fuel infrastructure.
Last year, the Houthis began targeting Israeli-linked shipping with drone and missile attacks in response to the Israeli onslaught in Gaza. The US launched a new bombing campaign against the Houthis back in January and continues to bomb Yemen frequently. But the US strikes have only escalated the situation and have done nothing to deter the Houthis, who have said they will stop if there’s a ceasefire in Gaza.
