Israeli military says it destroyed an unidentified ‘aerial target’ and separately intercepted surface-to-surface missile over the Red Sea.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels claim they launched a “large number” of ballistic missiles and drones towards Israel and warned of more attacks to come.
Israel earlier said it destroyed an unidentified “aerial target” over the Red Sea on Tuesday morning.
“There was no threat or risk to civilians,” the Israeli military said.
The incident triggered air raid sirens in the popular Red Sea tourist resort of Eilat and sent residents running for shelter.
Separately, the Israeli military said that it used the “Arrow” aerial defence system for the first time since the October 7 outbreak of the war with Hamas to intercept a surface-to-surface missile in the Red Sea fired towards its territory.
Yahya Saree, a spokesperson for the Houthi’s military, said the operation was the third targeting Israel and threatened to carry out more strikes “until the Israeli aggression stops.”
🚨JUST IN: Yemeni Houthi Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree said in a televised statement:
″Our armed forces launched a large batch of ballistic missiles and a large number of drones at various targets of the Israeli enemy
The Yemeni Armed Forces confirm that this… pic.twitter.com/HRpwzU5muO
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 31, 2023
Earlier, a senior Houthi official told the AFP news agency that the Iran-backed Yemeni group had sent drones towards southern Israel.
“These drones belong to the state of Yemen,” Abdelaziz bin Habtour, prime minister of the Houthi government, said.
The incidents come as regional tensions rise amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
“This is a concern for Israel because it is already engaged in conflict with the Iran-backed Hezbollah on its northern front,” Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat said, reporting from occupied East Jerusalem.
On October 27, drones caused explosions in the Egyptian Red Sea towns of Taba and Nuweiba, near the Israeli border. Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Iran-backed Houthis launched drones and missiles “with the intention of harming Israel”.
The incidents came two days after Hamas, the group running the Gaza Strip, said it launched a rocket towards Eilat. The Israeli military said the rocket landed in an open field.
Also last week, the US military said a navy warship in the northern Red Sea intercepted projectiles launched by Houthis potentially towards Israel.
Regional tensions have been on the rise after Hamas launched a surprise attack inside Israel on October 7. Since then, Hezbollah has been involved in increasingly heavy exchanges of cross-border fire with Israel. Iran denies having any role in the Hamas attack.
Meanwhile, Israel in recent days has expanded its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip, which has been under relentless bombardment for more than three weeks.
Officials in Gaza say more than 8,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s air attacks, while in Israel, the death toll has topped 1,400, according to Israeli authorities.
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