20 injured as Houthi missile strikes central Israel

At least 20 Israelis were injured on Saturday when a missile launched from Yemen landed in the Tel Aviv-Jaffa area in central Israel, Anadolu Agency reports.

The Israeli army confirmed the attack, stating: “A missile originating in Yemen impacted central Israel after interception attempts failed.”

According to Magen David Adom, Israel’s ambulance service, 20 individuals sustained minor injuries, mostly caused by broken glass from the explosion.

The Houthi group claimed responsibility for the strike.

In a statement, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree announced that their fighters carried out “a military operation targeting a military site of the Israeli enemy in the occupied Jaffa area with a hypersonic ballistic missile.”

The announcement comes after the Houthis claimed multiple drone strikes on central and southern Israel on Friday and three more military operations against Israeli positions on Thursday, coinciding with Israeli air strikes on Yemen’s cities of Sana’a and Al Hudaydah.

The Houthis, in solidarity with Gaza, which has been facing an Israeli genocidal war since Oct. 7, 2023, have targeted Israeli cargo ships or those associated with Tel Aviv in the Red Sea with missiles and drones, expressing a determination to continue operations until the end of the onslaught on the enclave.

Since the beginning of 2024, a coalition led by the US has been conducting air strikes that it said are targeting Houthi locations in parts of Yemen in response to attacks by the group in the Red Sea. The counterattacks have been occasionally met with retaliation from the group.

With the intervention of Washington and London and an escalation of tensions, the Houthis announced that they consider all American and British ships military targets.

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