No one in Israel's defense establishment harbors illusions that Thursday’s Air Force strikes in Yemen will deter the Houthis or end their war of attrition against Israel.
Thursday's strikes were designed to achieve four objectives, with the most crucial being extracting a price from the Houthi regime that threatens its hold on power and encourages the regime's numerous opponents to act against it. To achieve this, Israeli Air Force aircraft targeted functional government infrastructure used for providing civilian needs and operating military forces.
Sanaa International Airport takes heavy damage
Thursday’s strike, as in previous operations, saw the IDF primarily hit major transportation and transit infrastructure, including three Red Sea ports. The largest, Hodeidah port, is essential for the Houthi regime's ability to maintain basic economic production and civilian needs, as well as their missile and drone manufacturing operations. Additionally, Sanaa Airport was targeted for the first time, with combat aircraft reportedly destroyed.
Strikes on Yemen hit regime symbols during leader's speech
The strikes on Sanaa Airport, Hodeidah Port and the Aziz power station represent a calculated hit on symbols of Houthi authority, aimed at undermining public confidence in the regime and threatening its survival.
The timing of the aerial attack, coinciding with Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi's weekly address, was designed to diminish the regime's prestige and humiliate its leadership, potentially making it more vulnerable to its numerous domestic opponents.
Israeli strikes on Sanaa International Airport
The precision strikes also targeted the Houthis' ability to receive smuggled weapons, spare parts and raw materials for missile and drone production from Iran. Hodeidah Port serves as the primary entry point for large components of long-range ballistic missiles, large drones and other missile systems.
Similarly, Sanaa International Airport, capable of handling large civilian cargo aircraft, has been crucial for Iranian smuggling operations of missile and drone components, as well as raw materials for rocket fuel and explosives.
The use of major civilian sea and air ports has allowed the Houthis and Iran to overcome significant distance challenges and evade intelligence monitoring by American, British and Israeli forces tracking weapons smuggling from Iran.
Iranian Revolutionary Guard instructors and Hezbollah operatives, who assist the Houthis with missile assembly and provide intelligence support, primarily enter Yemen through Sanaa International Airport, which was struck Thursday. The attacks on power stations directly impact weapons production and the assembly of Iranian-smuggled missile and drone components.
Another objective of Thursday's strike was to demonstrate to Yemen that distance from Israel poses no obstacle to the Israeli Air Force's capability to conduct frequent, precise operations and deliver severe responses to missile launches, despite the high operational costs. This marks the fourth such Israeli strike, following last week's operation which was followed by separate American and British air strikes.
US, Israel divide military targets in Yemen operations
A clear division of labor has emerged in Yemen strikes between U.S.-led coalition forces and Israel. American forces strictly target military installations such as missile depots, launch sites, radar stations and command centers, constrained by White House directives under the Biden administration to avoid civilian infrastructure and prevent regional escalation.
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IDF chief Herzi Halevi, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz and Air Force chief Tomer Bar
(Photo: Defense Ministry)
Israel, operating without such restrictions, strikes dual-use civilian infrastructure that serves military purposes – targets that U.S. and British forces have avoided.
The high frequency of strikes over the past two weeks reflects coordinated action between Israel, the U.S. and Britain, sending a clear message to the Houthi regime about potential consequences for continued attacks on international shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb strait and Red Sea, as well as missile and drone launches against Israel.
The timing is particularly significant given recent Houthi missile attacks that have temporarily disrupted civilian aviation at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport. Thursday's strike on Sanaa International Airport appears to signal that if flights to Tel Aviv face hours-long disruptions and foreign carriers avoid Israel, Yemen might face complete suspension of international flights.
While Thursday's damage to Sanaa Airport can be repaired, future strikes could lead to a complete halt of civilian aviation in Yemen. Meanwhile, Israeli officials indicate they are gathering intelligence for potentially more intense responses if Houthi missile and drone attacks continue.