Yemen’s Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone strike on the Israeli city of Tel Aviv on Friday that killed one person, their most distant attack to date.
The rebels, who are close to Iran, have threatened to make Tel Aviv a “primary target” after months of attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden carried out in solidarity with the Palestinians.
The “qualitative military operation targeted one of the important objectives in the occupied area of Jaffa, known in Israel as Tel Aviv,” their military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed to “decisively” avenge the attack. “As we have demonstrated to this day, this time again the defense and security system [israélien] “will make anyone who tries to harm Israel or sends terrorists against it pay decisively and by surprise,” he wrote in a message on his X account (ex-Twitter).
In Israel, police said they received hundreds of reports “around 3:00 a.m.” (8:00 p.m. in Quebec) of a “strong explosion” in Tel Aviv. A 50-year-old was “found dead in his apartment,” police said, adding that he had been hit by shrapnel.
“No sirens [d’alerte] “There was no sound,” the Israeli army reported, specifying that the attack was carried out by a “very large drone capable of traveling great distances.”
New “undetectable” drone?
The drone had been detected by the army, but “human error” meant that the “interception and defense systems were not activated,” a military official told reporters.
The Houthis have been carrying out attacks on shipping off the coast of Yemen since November, saying they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians amid the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
They had warned last Saturday that they “would not hesitate to extend their military operations […] until the aggression stops.”
The Houthis have claimed several attacks targeting the Israeli Red Sea city of Eilat in the past, but Friday’s strike was the first confirmed operation against Tel Aviv.
It was carried out “by a new drone named ‘Jaffa’, capable of bypassing enemy interception systems and undetectable by radars. It successfully achieved its objectives,” their spokesperson said on Friday.
He warned that, from now on, “the occupied area of Jaffa is an unsafe area and will be a main target” for Houthi attacks that will “reach deep into” Israeli territory, “including sensitive military and security targets.”
Singaporean ship hit
Also on Friday, a Singapore-flagged container ship was “hit” by projectiles 80 nautical miles (148 kilometers) southeast of the Yemeni city of Aden, British maritime security company Ambrey said.
The UK Navy’s maritime safety agency UKMTO also said that “a vessel was hit by projectiles from an unknown source” southeast of Aden.
The Houthis later claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they had targeted the ship with drones and missiles because “its owner had transited it through Israeli ports.”
“All crew members are safe and sound,” United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said, and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore confirmed.
The agency identified the container ship as the LOBIVIA, saying the attack caused a fire that was brought under control. The ship is heading “under its own power” to the port of Berbera in Somalia to assess the damage and determine what repairs are needed, it added.
Houthi rebels have attacked at least 88 ships, according to the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think tank, prompting shipping companies to avoid the Red Sea, through which about 12% of global trade passes, according to the International Chamber of Shipping.
Affected by this situation, the Suez Canal reported on Thursday a 23.4% drop in its revenues in 2023.