UPDATE – Death toll from Israeli airstrikes in western Yemen rises to 6, Houthis say

UPDATES DEATH TOLL, CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK

By Aziz Al-Ahmadi

SANAA, Yemen (AA) – The death toll from Israeli strikes on Al Hudaydah Port in western Yemen rose to six, while 83 people were injured, the Houthi group said on Sunday.

"The death toll from the Israeli aggression on Al Hudaydah has risen to six, three missing, and 83 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 had earlier said that 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.

It marked 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 the Gaza Strip, where nearly 39,000 people have been killed in a devastating military offensive since Oct. 7, 2023.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi