The Israeli military has claimed that it attempted to kill Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari, the chief of staff for the military wing of Yemen’s Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah.
“Last night, while the strikes in Iran were ongoing, air force fighter jets flew over 2,000 kilometers from Israel and struck in Sanaa in Yemen. We will update later on the results of the strike,” said Israeli Air Force spokesman Effie Defrin.
Hazam al-Assad, a senior member of Ansar Allah’s political bureau, has said the claims that al-Ghamari was targeted were false, while a senior Israeli official told Ynet that Israel believes al-Ghamari was at least wounded, and it was unclear whether or not he was killed.
The Houthis have launched frequent drone and missile attacks at Israeli territory since Israel unilaterally broke the ceasefire in Gaza on March 18 with a massive bombing of the Strip. The Yemeni attacks have continued amid the Israel-Iran war, which was launched by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree announced on Sunday that Yemeni forces launched missile attacks over the previous 24 hours that were coordinated with Iran. “This operation was coordinated with the operations carried out by the Iranian army against the criminal Israeli enemy,” he said.
On Saturday, a Houthi missile fell in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, injuring five Palestinians, including three children. The Israeli military said it didn’t fire interceptors at the missile.
Saree reaffirmed that Yemeni attacks on Israel would continue until there’s a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the Israeli siege on the Palestinian territory. “The Yemeni Armed Forces, as they proudly follow these developments, affirm that they are committed to the covenant and promise with the people of Gaza and its loyal, free mujahideen, until the aggression against them stops and the siege is lifted,” he said.
The Houthis are known for their resilience and didn’t back down in the face of a very heavy US bombing campaign that was conducted by the Trump administration from March 15 to May 6. During that time, the US military said it struck over 1,000 targets, and at least 200 civilians were killed, according to the Yemen Data Project.
