IDF downs Houthi missile fired from Yemen

The Israeli military overnight Thursday downed a missile fired by Houthi terrorists in Yemen that triggered air-raid sirens in central Israel, including in Jerusalem, the greater Tel Aviv area and parts of Judea.

The missile was intercepted in Israeli airspace, according to the Israel Defense Forces, which was probing reports of debris falling in the city of Modi’in, located between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

There were no immediate reports of direct injuries or damage.

However, Magen David Adom emergency medics treated numerous people who were hurt while rushing to shelter, as well as others suffering from acute anxiety.

Flights in and out of Ben-Gurion International Airport were halted for about 30 minutes due to the Houthi attack, with two planes diverting to Larnaca in Cyprus.

Hours later, the military said that the Air Force had intercepted a drone launched from Yemen.

The unmanned aerial vehicle was downed before crossing into Israeli territory; thus no alerts were activated in accordance with policy.

On Monday night, the Israeli Air Force intercepted a missile fired by Houthi terrorists in Yemen at central Israel, in what was the seventh such nighttime attack over the past two weeks.

The missile was downed before crossing into Israeli territory, according to the military. Air-raid sirens were nevertheless activated due to fears of falling fragments from the interception.

Last Friday night, the IDF intercepted a Houthi missile that triggered air-raid sirens across the Jerusalem, Judea and Dead Sea areas. It was the first time sirens sounded in the capital since the Iranian attack on Oct. 1.

The previous night, sirens blared in the greater Tel Aviv area as the IDF intercepted another Houthi missile fired from Yemen. A U.S. THAAD anti-missile battery assisted in the interception, in the first such instance since the system was deployed to Israel in October.

Houthi terrorists have launched more than 200 missiles and 170 drones at Israel in support of Hamas since the terrorist invasion of the northwestern Negev on Oct. 7, 2023.

On Dec. 26, the Israeli Air Force conducted strikes on the western coast of and deep inside Yemen, including at Sanaa International Airport in the Houthi-controlled capital. The targets included the Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power stations, in addition to terrorist infrastructure in the Hodeidah, Salif and Ras Kanatib ports.

“These military targets were used by the Houthi terrorist regime to smuggle Iranian weapons into the region and for the entry of senior Iranian officials. This is a further example of the Houthis’ exploitation of civilian infrastructure for military purposes,” the IDF said.

Speaking from IAF headquarters after the strike on the second night of Chanukah, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is engaged in a modern-day Maccabean struggle.

“We are determined to cut off this terrorist arm of Iran’s axis of evil,” the prime minister said. “We will persist in this until we complete the task.”