Yemen's Houthi rebels say fired missile at Israel

SANAA, Yemen: Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they fired a ballistic missile towards Israel on Saturday, in response to Israel’s conduct towards Palestinians during the Gaza war.

In Israel, warning sirens sounded in several areas, before the army announced the “missile was most likely successfully intercepted”.

It was the first missile launch against Israel announced by the Houthis since the June 24 ceasefire between Israel and Iran which followed their 12-day war.

In a statement, rebel military spokesman Yahya Saree said the Houthis had fired at a “sensitive Israeli enemy target in the occupied area of Beersheba using a Dhu al-Fiqar ballistic missile”.

The attack was in “response to the crimes of the criminal Zionist enemy against civilians in the Gaza Strip”, Saree added.

The Houthis have launched repeated missile and drone attacks against Israel since their Palestinian ally Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel sparked the Gaza war.

The Iran-backed rebels, who say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians, paused their attacks during a two-month ceasefire that ended in March, but renewed them after Israel resumed its offensive.

Israel has carried out several retaliatory strikes in Yemen, targeting Houthi-held ports and the airport in the rebel-held capital Sanaa.

Saree said the rebel administration would “continue its supportive operations until the aggression against Gaza stops and the siege is lifted”.