IDF shoots down missile from Yemen that sets off sirens in central Israel
No injuries reported; missile is first fired by Houthis to trigger sirens since Israeli airstrike killed terror group’s PM, other leaders in Sanaa
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The Israel Defense Forces said a missile fired from Yemen on Wednesday morning was intercepted by the air force after sirens sounded across the center of the country.
No injuries were reported in the incident, which came less than a week after Israel bombed a meeting of Houthi leaders in Yemen’s capital of Sanaa, killing the terror group’s prime minister and others.
Since then, the Iran-backed group, which has been firing missiles and drones at Israel for nearly two years, has escalated its attacks. It fired projectiles at Israel as well as at ships it says are linked to the country, though none reached Israeli territory or triggered alert sirens until Wednesday. Two missiles fell apart over Saudi Arabia a day earlier, the IDF said.
The alerts sounded across central Israel, including in the Tel Aviv area, shortly before 10 a.m.
On Monday, the Houthis held a funeral for their slain prime minister, Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser al-Rahawi, and other ministers killed in the Israeli strikes.
Previous Israeli actions in Yemen have failed to halt the Houthis’ continued drone and missile attacks during the ongoing war, though the earlier attacks usually targeted infrastructure, rather than hitting specific officials based on precise intelligence.
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The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre.
The Houthis held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, they had fired over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of attack drones and cruise missiles at Israel, including one that killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July 2024, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.
Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched more than 70 ballistic missiles and at least 23 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.
The Times of Israel Community.