IDF shoots down missile heading to Israel in 1st Houthi attack since Yemen port strike
Long-range Arrow 3 defense system intercepts ballistic missile outside of Israeli airspace; sirens sound in Eilat for fear of falling shrapnel
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The long-range Arrow 3 defense system intercepted a ballistic missile outside of Israeli airspace launched by the Iran-backed Houthis from Yemen early Sunday morning, the IDF said.
The Arrow 3 system is designed to take out ballistic missiles while they are still outside of the atmosphere.
Sirens sounded in Israel’s southernmost city of Eilat — which has been a frequent target of missile and drone attacks by the Houthis in Yemen — amid fears of falling shrapnel.
The Houthis claimed to have targeted Eilat with multiple ballistic missiles, though there were no immediate reports of impacts in the region.
It was the first attack by the Iran-backed rebels since Israel carried out a major strike against the Houthi-controlled port of Hodeida in western Yemen on Saturday, a day after a drone launched by the group killed an Israeli man in Tel Aviv.
The IDF said there was no change to instructions for Israeli civilians, although it had been anticipating a response by the Houthis.
Dubbed by the military “Operation Outstretched Arm,” the Israel Air Force strike on the port was aimed at preventing the Houthis from importing Iranian weapons, as well as causing the Iran-backed rebels financial damage.
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According to the Israeli military, the port in the Houthi-controlled city has been used repeatedly to bring in weapons from Iran, and therefore Israel saw it as a legitimate military target.
According to the IDF, Yemen’s Houthis in the past nine months have fired over 220 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones at Israel — mostly toward Eilat — ostensibly in solidarity with the Gaza Strip, where Israel is battling Hamas terrorists.
The vast majority of the Iran-backed group’s projectiles have been intercepted by US forces stationed in the Red Sea and Israeli air defenses and fighter jets, or missed their target. Before the attack on Tel Aviv on Friday, only one Houthi projectile, a cruise missile, had successfully struck Israel, hitting an open area near Eilat in March.
Until Saturday, Israel had not responded to the Houthi attacks, instead opting to let the United States-led coalition continue to strike the Houthis in response to the Iran-backed group’s attacks on commercial and military ships in the Red Sea.
The US-led coalition had not targeted the port, as it was seen as also being used to bring humanitarian aid into the war-torn country.
In January, the Biden administration redesignated Yemen’s Houthi rebels as a terrorist organization, partially restoring sanctions it lifted three years ago.
The Times of Israel Community.