The Israel Air Force carried out multiple strikes against Iran’s Yemeni proxies, the Houthis, on Saturday, including an attack on Yemen’s biggest port, Hudaydah, in an attack code-named Operation Outstretched Arm.
Yemen TV : Video shows where Israel struck Houthi military targets inside Yemen 7/20/2024 1:21 PM PDT pic.twitter.com/pupVfmnHKn
— Boaz Guttman בועז גוטמן (@boazgu1) July 20, 2024
It is believed that Saudi Arabia allowed Israeli aircraft to cross through its airspace to carry out the attack.
Dozens were killed and injured, according to multiple reports. The port itself went up in flames, fueled by oil stored at the site. The targets included military equipment facilities, energy infrastructure, oil refineries and a military airport where the Houthis received deliveries of weapons from Iran.
The attack followed a Houthi drone strike in the wee hours of Friday morning in Tel Aviv that left one person dead and eight others wounded. The drone exploded against a multi-story apartment building just a few hundred meters away from the US Embassy.
“A short while ago, IDF fighter jets struck military targets of the Houthi terrorist regime in the area of the Al Hudaydah Port in Yemen in response to the hundreds of attacks carried out against the State of Israel in recent months,” the IDF said in a statement.
Shortly thereafter, IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari provided an updated in a briefing with reporters.
“The Israeli Air Force conducted precise strikes on Houthi military targets in Yemen. The military target was the Hodeidah port in Yemen, used by the Houthis as a main supply route for the transfer of weapons from Iran to Yemen, like the UAV itself that was used in the attack on Friday morning.
“In the area of the port, the Israeli Air Force struck dual-use infrastructure used for terrorist activities, including energy infrastructures,” Hagari said, saying the strikes were carried out to “stop the Houthi terror attacks.”
However, he pointed out, “the Houthis target other countries in the Middle East, the United States of America and the world with their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea — and not just the Red Sea.
“Who is behind the Houthis? One country: Iran,” Hagari added.
The US issued a brief statement emphasizing that Israel “acted alone.”
The fire that is currently burning in Yemen is seen across the Middle East. The blood of Israeli citizens has a price. pic.twitter.com/r3Aq3GNl1J
— יואב גלנט – Yoav Gallant (@yoavgallant) July 20, 2024
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement on Saturday night that he was at the IAF Command Center together with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, IDF Chief of Staff LTG Herzi Halevi, and Air Force Commander Tomer Bar, monitoring the attack, which took place 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from Israeli territory.
“The fire that is currently burning in Hodeidah is seen across the Middle East and the significance is clear,” Gallant said.
“The Houthis attacked us over 200 times. The first time that they harmed an Israeli citizen, we struck them. And we will do this in any place where it may be required.
“The blood of Israeli citizens has a price,” Gallant warned. “This has been made clear in Lebanon, in Gaza, in Yemen, and in other places – if they will dare to attack us, the result will be identical.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz echoed Gallant’s message in a separate statement posted Saturday night to the X social media platform.
“We will strike anyone who strikes us,” Katz warned.
“Iran supports, trains, and finances the Houthi terror organization as part of its regional network of terror organizations aimed at attacking Israel. This is the time for the international community to maximize sanctions on Iran – under its direction, the Houthis are severely damaging Freedom of the seas and trade routes. Iran is the head of the snake – it must be stopped now.”
هذه رسالة لكل الشرق الأوسط. pic.twitter.com/hPZQkOkE9N
— Amir Ohana – אמיר אוחנה (@AmirOhana) July 20, 2024
