ALBAWABA - The Houthi movement in Yemen has taken credit for shooting a missile at Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport for the fourth time in three days, raising tensions in the area and temporarily disrupting air travel.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement on Sunday that the group has launched a "Falasteen-2" hypersonic ballistic missile against the airport, which is situated in the captured city of Jaffa. According to Saree, the strike was effective and caused aviation traffic to stop for more than half an hour.
As part of their campaign, the Houthis declared their support with the Palestinians and promised to keep attacking Israeli airspace until the "aggression on Gaza stops and the blockade is lifted."
After a third reported assault the day before, this current incident represents the fourth missile fire against Ben Gurion Airport in 72 hours. The Israeli military verified earlier on Sunday that it had stopped a missile fired from Yemen before it entered Israeli airspace.
During siren warnings in downtown Tel Aviv, two Israeli people were allegedly hurt, one of them critically. An official statement posted on the Israeli army's X (formerly Twitter) account said that the missile was engaged by air defense systems in accordance with routine operating protocols.
As sirens sounded across Tel Aviv and the surrounding regions, numerous inbound planes were forced to circle the skies as takeoff and landing operations at Ben Gurion Airport were halted, according to the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth.
In a similar incident, the Houthis said they had fought the U.S. Navy for a long time in the Red Sea, employing drones and missiles to strike the aircraft carrier USS Harry Truman and many American vessels. No further information was given.
The escalation comes after U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that he would "completely eliminate" the Houthis and launched a massive military strike against them.
The Houthis continue to portray their acts as a kind of protest against Israeli aggression and U.S. interference in Yemen as tensions in the area and globally escalate.
