ALBAWABA - As tensions in the area rise in the wake of the continuing U.S. air assault over Yemen, the Houthi movement fired a ballistic missile at Israel on Sunday.
The Israeli military claims that the missile was stopped before it could enter Israeli airspace. Israeli media said that two individuals were mildly hurt as they hurried to shelters after sirens sounded in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
According to Al Jazeera, Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesman, took credit for the missile launch and said it was directed against Ben Gurion Airport in support of the Palestinian people. Saree said that U.S. operations on Yemen would not stop them from supporting Gaza and promised further strikes.
Saree said in a second statement that Houthi troops and American warships, including the USS Harry Truman aircraft carrier, had engaged in three different clashes in the last 24 hours. According to reports, the Houthis continued their use of drones and cruise missiles in these clashes, which they said were a reaction to American aggression.
U.S. airstrikes on Yemen have also increased in intensity. According to Houthi sources quoted by Al Jazeera, since early Friday, there have been 72 airstrikes, including 16 nocturnal attacks on Saada and the capital Sana'a. At least 57 people were killed and 128 injured, many of them women and children, according to the Houthi-run health ministry.
Additionally, according to Al Jazeera, the Trump administration's campaign seems to be more extensive than earlier U.S. operations, now focusing on metropolitan areas and high-ranking Houthi individuals. The United States has indicated a protracted battle by relocating naval units and deploying strategic bombers in the area.
The Houthis have promised to keep up their activities until the blockade of Gaza is lifted. They began attacking Israeli-affiliated ships in the Red Sea when the battle in Gaza begun on March 18.
