The Israel Defense Forces intercepted a drone launched at the Jewish state by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists, the military said early on Tuesday.
The attack triggered air raid sirens in the Red Sea resort city of Eilat shortly after midnight, sending the city’s roughly 53,000 residents and thousands of tourists to bomb shelters.
“Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago regarding a hostile aircraft infiltration in the area of Eilat, a suspicious aerial target from Yemen was intercepted,” the IDF subsequently announced. No injuries or damage were reported.
The Islamic Republic of Iran fired multiple missile barrages at Israel from Sunday night into Monday, breaking a fragile ceasefire that had been in place since April 8. In a coordinated attack, the Houthis also launched two missiles from Yemen on Monday morning.
In a statement taking responsibility for the strikes, the Iranian proxy vowed to “respond to escalation with escalation,” and warned that its attacks would intensify “in line with the battle and in conjunction with the axis of jihad and resistance.”
Bloomberg quoted the Houthis as saying in the statement that they had a right to “confront the American-Israeli aggression.”
“We declare a complete and total ban on Israeli maritime navigation in the Red Sea,” the terrorist army added. “We consider all enemy movements to be legitimate military targets for our Armed Forces.”
