Houthis Strike U.S. Warships and Tel Aviv in Retaliation for Gaza and Yemen Airstrikes
Yemen's Ansar Allah targets Ben Gurion Airport and the USS Truman after U.S. air raids on Sanaa and Saada; vows to continue operations in support of Palestine.
Watan-The Ansar Allah movement (Houthis) announced on Sunday, in two separate statements, that it carried out two military operations. The first targeted U.S. warships in the Red Sea, led by the American aircraft carrier USS Truman, and the second targeted Ben Gurion Airport in the occupied Palestinian area of Jaffa (Tel Aviv). This came a day after U.S. fighter jets launched 16 airstrikes on various areas in the provinces of Sanaa and Saada in northern Yemen.
The military spokesperson for the group, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, stated that “in support of the oppressed Palestinian people and their brave resistance, the missile force carried out a military operation targeting Ben Gurion Airport in occupied Jaffa (Tel Aviv) with a ballistic missile of the Zulfiqar type,” claiming the operation “successfully hit its target.”
He stressed that “this operation proves the failure of the American aggression to prevent Yemen from continuing its support operations for the oppressed Palestinian people.”
Targeted Response from Yemen
U.S. fighter jets have intensified airstrikes on Houthi-controlled areas in recent days.
Saree confirmed that “dozens of daily airstrikes will not deter the armed forces from fulfilling their religious, moral, and humanitarian duties, and they will continue, with God’s help, their operations against the Israeli enemy until the aggression on Gaza stops and the siege is lifted.”
Israeli media reported on Sunday that “sirens were sounded in central Israel after a missile was detected launched from Yemen.”
The Israeli army said, “We intercepted a missile launched from Yemen before it entered Israeli territory.”
Earlier on Sunday, Brigadier General Saree had already announced the continuation of military operations for the third consecutive week against hostile warships, including the USS Truman, emphasizing a responsible and active confrontation with the American enemy.
He explained in a statement that the “missile force, drone air force, and naval units engaged with hostile warships, especially the USS Truman, in the Red Sea three times within the past 24 hours.”
He said the confrontations were executed using a combination of cruise missiles, drones, and naval assets.
He affirmed that their forces would “continue developing their defensive operations and respond to escalation with escalation, and will not retreat from supporting the oppressed Palestinian people until the aggression on Gaza ends and the siege is lifted.”
Meanwhile, American fighter jets launched 16 airstrikes before and after midnight on Saturday on areas in the provinces of Sanaa and Saada in northern Yemen.
Strikes on Yemen, Fury from Allies
According to the Houthi-run Saba News Agency, “The American aggression targeted three airstrikes near Jabal al-Nabi Shu’ayb in Bani Matar district, in the Sanaa Governorate,” west of the capital.
The strikes also “targeted eastern Saada with two airstrikes, and two more on Bani Mu’adh in Sahar district in Saada.”
In addition, “three airstrikes hit eastern Saada city, four airstrikes targeted Al-Salim district, and two strikes hit the al-Asayid area in Ketaf district, causing extensive damage to public and private property.”
Washington began a second round of missile and airstrike operations on Houthi targets in Yemen on March 15, claiming to be dismantling their capabilities, according to the U.S. administration.
In a televised address on the eve of Eid al-Fitr, Mehdi al-Mashat, head of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, said that “the American aggression has only resulted in killing children and women and targeting civilian sites.”
In related developments, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, “The U.S. cannot claim it is restoring stability to the region by attacking Yemen.”
This came during a meeting in Tehran on Saturday with Hans Grundberg, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to Yemen, who is visiting Iran for consultations.
The Iranian foreign minister condemned “the repeated American military aggression on various regions in Yemen, the killing of Yemeni civilians, and the destruction of homes and infrastructure.”
He added: “The American military aggression on Yemen, along with the Zionist entity’s intensified genocide in Gaza and its aggression on Lebanon and Syria, is further evidence of America’s collusion with the regime and its role in spreading instability and insecurity in the region,” according to Iran’s IRNA news agency.
