Yemen missile interception sparks fire near Jerusalem; 4 drones launched from Iraq
Houthis say they targeted IDF base in central Israel; Yemen media says US, UK airstrikes hit targets in Amran and Saada governorates
A ballistic missile launched at Israel from Yemen was successfully intercepted before it entered Israeli airspace, the military said Monday morning.
It was the second missile attack from Yemen on Israel in days.
The Iran-backed Houthis took responsibility for the attack, saying it targeted the Israel Defense Force’s Nahal Sorek base in central Israel.
The base is located approximately halfway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It is home to the army’s Ammunition Center, which is responsible for purchasing, collecting, storing, fixing and supplying weaponry, including everything from simple bullets to advanced missiles.
The missile triggered sirens in the Beit Shemesh area in central Israel and in the southern West Bank.
Shrapnel from an interceptor missile caused a fire in Beit Shemesh, the military and emergency services said.
“Simultaneously with the extinguishing operations, the firefighters are carrying out additional scans in the area, in order to rule out additional fires and damage from interceptor/missile shrapnel,” the Jerusalem region fire service said in a statement.
שריפה פרצה באזור בית שמש, נבדק אם כתוצאה משברי מיירט@ItayBlumental @VeredPelman
(צילום: שימוש לפי סעיף 27 א') pic.twitter.com/edbrYotDK0— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) November 11, 2024
The Israel Defense Forces also said air defenses shot down four drones that were launched toward Israel overnight “from the east” — code for Iraq.
The military said two of the UAVs were intercepted before they reached Israeli territory.
The Iran-backed Islamic Resistance in Iraq took responsibility for launching the drones at Israel. The coalition of pro-Iran factions said it launched the UAVs at “vital targets” in northern and southern Israel.
The Houthis have attacked Israel and global shipping over the past year, saying it was doing so in support of Palestinian terror group Hamas, which led an invasion of southern Israel on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, sparking the war in Gaza.
On Friday, the Yemen militia claimed to target the Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel with a ballistic missile. The IDF said the projectile was successfully intercepted.
Monday’s ballistic missile attack from Yemen came hours after Al-Masirah TV, the main television news outlet run by the Houthis, said a series of airstrikes targeted the Amran and Saada governorates. The outlet said the strikes were carried out by the United States and Britain. There was no confirmation from either country.
The US and UK have repeatedly struck Houthi targets in Yemen since January in response to attacks by the Iran-backed rebels on shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
US warplanes also staged multiple strikes Saturday night on Houthi advanced weapons storage facilities in Yemen, the Pentagon said.
The facilities contained various weapons used to target military and civilian vessels navigating international waters throughout the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, according to information provided to AFP by the Pentagon.
In more than 100 Houthi attacks over nearly a year, four sailors have been killed and two ships have sunk, while one vessel and its crew remain detained since being hijacked last November.
The attacks have seriously disrupted a maritime route that carries 12 percent of global trade.
Israel has also twice bombed Houthi targets in retaliation for ballistic missile and drone attacks, including one that killed a man in Tel Aviv.
Yemen’s Houthis have fired over 220 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones at Israel over the past year, saying that the attacks are in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has been battling Hamas since the October 7 attack.
Israel has also been attacked by Iraq’s Islamic Resistance in Iraq repeatedly over the past year.
Last month, two soldiers were killed and 24 injured in a drone attack from Iraq. According to an IDF probe, two explosive-laden drones were launched from Iraq in the attack, one of which was shot down by air defenses while the second impacted an army base in the northern Golan Heights.
