Yemen's Houthis claim hitting 2 targets, 1 'vital' in northern Israel

By Mohammed Sameai

SANAA, Yemen (AA) – The Houthi group in Yemen on Thursday claimed to have hit two targets, one a ship in the Red Sea en route to Israel with missiles and drones, and the other a "vital target" in the northern Israeli city of Haifa.

Houthis spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a statement that the group carried out two “military operations” in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

“The first operation, in cooperation with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, hit a vital target in Haifa with a number of winged missiles, successfully achieving its objective," he said.

The statement said, “The second operation targeted the SEAJOY ship in the Red Sea, aiming to defy the company owning it from entering the ports of occupied Palestine.”

It mentioned that this operation was executed "using a drone boat, missiles, and drones, directly hitting the ship."

As of yet, Israel has not issued a statement regarding the Houthi group's claims at 1925GMT.

Earlier in the day, Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi announced that his group had conducted a joint military operation with "the Islamic Resistance in Iraq" against Israel, but provided no further details.

Since the beginning of 2024, a coalition led by the US has been conducting airstrikes in Yemen that it claims are targeting Houthi locations in response to the group's attacks in the Red Sea. The group has occasionally retaliated against attacks by the US-led coalition forces.

The Houthis have been targeting cargo ships in the Red Sea owned or operated by Israeli companies or transporting goods to and from Israel in solidarity with the Gaza Strip, where nearly 37,700 Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli offensive since last October following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.

With tensions escalating due to US-UK airstrikes against Houthi sites in Yemen, the group declared that it considered all American and British ships to be legitimate military targets.

The Red Sea is one of the world's most frequently used sea routes for oil and fuel shipments.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala