The IDF released on Thursday footage of Israeli Air Force fighter jets attacks against strategic Houthi targets in Yemen. Dozens of aircraft flew approximately 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) overnight, striking the capital of Sana’a for the first time.
Over 60 bombs were used in the operation according to the military, hitting "Houthi military targets along the western coastline and deep within Yemen."
Strikes on Houthi terrorist regime targets in Yemen
(IDF)
The targets included fuel and oil tanks, two power stations and eight tugboats, whose incapacitation, according to the statement, "severely impacts Houthi military operations.” The IDF released footage of the attack featuring the communications of fighter pilots.
In one exchange, a pilot is heard saying, "That was a good hit. Alpha, very good." Later, another pilot reports, "Alpha, second bomb. Everything there exploded."
The strike in Yemen took place an hour after a ballistic missile launched from Yemen triggered sirens across central Israel and overnight was partially intercepted by the Arrow air defense system. The warhead, however, was not intercepted and exploded on a school in the Ramat Ef’al neighborhood of Ramat Gan, causing extensive damage.
Footage of Houthi ballistic rocket fired at Tel Aviv
The operation had been planned by the Air Force for several weeks, independent of Wednesday’s missile launch. Unlike the two previous strikes in Yemen – the last of which occurred more than two and a half months ago – targets in Sana’a, a Houthi stronghold, were also targeted. Power outages were reported in some areas with at least nine people killed according to some reports.
The strike’s main goal was to disable the Houthis' port operations – numbering three in total. The military said this represented "a severe economic blow." Estimates now say all operations at Houthi-controlled ports have been paralyzed.
The Houthis, however, dispute this. According to Reuters, sources at Hodeidah port reported that, while one tugboat was destroyed, other vessels at the port still allow for the movement of larger ships.
The first wave of strikes began along Yemen's coastline at 3:15 a.m., followed by a second volley at 4:30 a.m. near Sana’a. The operation involved 14 fighter jets targeting ports at Ras Issa, Hodeidah and Salif, as well as fuel and oil tanks and a power station in Sana’a.
Ynet security analyst Ron Ben-Yishai assessed that the operation is unlikely to deter the Houthis or impair their ability and intent to continue launching missiles and UAVs at Israel. Worse, he noted, they’ll continue targeting global commercial and military shipping in the Red Sea, causing significant economic disruption to energy transport – a campaign they've been waging for over a year.
His prediction was reinforced Thursday afternoon when the IDF announced it had intercepted a drone off the coast of Tel Aviv without triggering alarms, in accordance with policy. It’s believed the UAV was launched from Yemen.
The Houthis have vowed to continue attacking Israel as part of what they call their campaign in support of Gaza following the strike. The terror group’s spokesperson Yahya Saree said their attacks will persist "unless the aggression against Gaza stops and the siege is lifted."
"Israeli aggression will not deter Yemen or Yemenis from fulfilling their religious and moral duty to respond to the massacres in Gaza,” He added.
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Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened to target Houthi leaders themselves, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu adding, "This morning, the Air Force attacked strategic targets of the Houthis in the port of Hodeidah and deep into Yemen. We did this in response to repeated Houthi attacks against civilian targets in Israel. Last night they attacked a school in Ramat Gan,"
"After Hamas, Hezbollah and the Assad regime in Syria, the Houthis are almost the last arm of Iran's axis of evil. They are finding out, and will find out, the hard way that whoever harms Israel – will pay a very heavy price," he added.