Yemen | Israeli raids on ports and power plants

The Israeli army carried out strikes on Sunday against ports and power plants in Hodeida, a region in western Yemen under the control of Houthi rebels, reported Al-Massirah television, reporting to these insurgents.

The Houthis, allies of Iran like the Lebanese Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas, have opened a front against Israel in “solidarity” with the Palestinians of Gaza. On Saturday, they claimed responsibility for a missile attack on Tel Aviv airport.

“A new Israeli aggression targeted the port of the city of Hodeida and that of Ras Issa in the province of the same name, as well as two power plants,” Al-Massirah said.

The Israeli military said that “during a large-scale air operation, dozens of IAF aircraft […] attacked military targets of the Houthi terrorist regime in the regions of Ras Issa and Hodeida.”

“The targeted power plants and a seaport” were “used by the Houthis to transfer Iranian weapons to the region and supplies for military needs,” added an army spokesperson, David Avraham, in a statement. to the AFP.

“The strike was carried out in response to recent attacks by the Houthi regime against the State of Israel,” he said.

On Saturday, the Houthis claimed that Israel’s assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “will strengthen their resolve” to attack Israel.

Last July, they carried out a drone attack on Tel Aviv that killed a civilian.

In retaliation, Israel launched strikes on a power plant and fuel depots in the port of Hodeida.

The Houthis, who control large swaths of Yemen, are part of what Iran, Israel’s sworn enemy, calls the “axis of resistance”, which notably includes Hamas and Hezbollah.

They also regularly attack ships presented as linked to Israel, the United States or the United Kingdom in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The United States has carried out raids against Houthi targets in Yemen, sometimes with the help of the British army.