Houthi death toll from Israeli airstrikes in western Yemen rises to 3

By Aziz Al-Ahmadi

SANAA, Yemen (AA) — The death toll rose to three on Sunday after an Israeli strike on the western Yemeni port city of Al Hudaydah, the Houthi group announced, adding that 87 people were wounded from the attack.

"The death toll from the Israeli aggression on Al Hudaydah has risen to three dead and 87 injured," the Houthi-aligned Al-Masirah satellite broadcaster reported, citing the Health Ministry in the group's internationally unrecognized government.

The director of Al-Thawra Hospital in Al Hudaydah said those injured "from the Zionist bombing have been distributed to the city’s hospitals and are receiving medical care," according to the same channel.

On Saturday, Israeli aircraft carried out airstrikes targeting fuel tanks and a power station in the port of Al Hudaydah, according to the Houthi Health Ministry.

The Israeli army claimed responsibility for the raids, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described them as a "direct response" to a drone attack launched by the Houthi group on Tel Aviv on Friday, which killed an Israeli and injured 10 others.

American officials told private Israeli Channel 12 that Tel Aviv conducted the attack on Al Hudaydah independently, without any military involvement from Washington.

This marks the first direct Israeli response to recent Houthi attacks.

The Houthis have been targeting ships that are Israeli-owned, flagged, operated or headed to Israeli ports in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden with missiles and drones in solidarity with Gaza, which has been under a devastating Israeli onslaught since Oct. 7.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi