Israel's military says it has fully disabled Yemen's main airport with airstrikes
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s military said Tuesday it launched airstrikes against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, fully disabling the country’s international airport in the capital, Sanaa. It also said several power plants were struck in the area.
Footage aired on Israeli television showed thick black plumes of smoke rising above the skyline of Sanaa. Social media video purported to show multiple strikes around Sanaa, with black smoke rising as the thumps of the blast echoed against the surrounding mountains.
The strikes were the second time in two days that Israel attacked the rebels in Yemen, in retaliation for a missile strike on Israel’s airport on Sunday.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
JERUSALEM (AP) — Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said Tuesday that Israeli strikes had hit the capital, Sanaa, shortly after Israel's military issued a warning for people to evacuate the area of Yemen's international airport.
There was no immediate information on any casualties.
The Houthis’ satellite news channel said the strikes had hit Sanaa International Airport. They came a day after Israel launched airstrikes Monday night in retaliation for a missile strike the previous day on Israel’s international airport.
“We urge you to immediately evacuate the area of the airport and to warn anyone nearby to distance themselves immediately,” spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on social media, attaching a map of Sanaa International Airport. “Failure to evacuate the area endangers your lives.”
On Monday night, Israel targeted the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen’s Red Sea province of Hodeida, killing at least one person and wounding 35. The rebels’ media office said at least six strikes hit the crucial Hodeida port. Others hit a cement factory in the district of Bajil, 55 kilometers (34 miles) northeast of Hodeida, the rebels said.
The Houthis on Sunday launched a missile that struck an access road near Israel’s main airport near Tel Aviv, briefly halting flights and commuter traffic. Four people were lightly injured.
It was the first time a missile struck the grounds of Israel’s main airport, Ben Gurion, since the October 2023 start of the war in Gaza. It prompted a flurry of flight cancellations.
The Houthis have targeted Israel throughout the war in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, raising their profile as the last member of Iran’s self-described “Axis of Resistance” capable of launching regular attacks on Israel.
The U.S. military under President Donald Trump has launched an intensified campaign of airstrikes targeting the Houthis since March 15.
While most missiles launched by the Houthis have been intercepted, some have penetrated Israel’s missile defense systems, causing damage.
Israel has repeatedly struck against the rebels in Yemen.
It struck Hodeida and its oil infrastructure in July after a Houthi drone attack killed one person and wounded 10 in Tel Aviv. In September, Israel struck Hodeida again, killing at least four people after a missile targeted Ben Gurion airport as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was returning to the country. In December, Israeli strikes killed at least nine people in Hodeida.
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Associated Press writers Jon Gambrel in Dubai and Julia Frankel in Jerusalem contributed to this report.