Israel’s main airport was struck by a ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Sunday morning. The missile hit a grove near an access road inside the perimeter of Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv. Media reports suggest that at least six people were wounded.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that it failed to intercept the missile despite several attempts.
“An impact was identified in the area of Ben Gurion Airport,” the IDF said in a post on Telegram. The Israeli Air Force is investigating the failure.
The Houthis, who control western Yemen, including the capital and the port of Hodeidah, have launched a number of drones and missiles at commercial vessels passing through the Red Sea and at targets in Israel over the past year, aiming to pressure West Jerusalem over its military operation in Gaza. Israel launched the campaign following a deadly raid by the Palestinian militant group Hamas in October 2023. The Houthis said they would stop the attacks if Israel halts its operation in Gaza.
Israel has not launched strikes against Yemen in response to the Houthi attacks. The US, however, began air and naval strikes against Houthi targets in March, citing threats to Red Sea shipping. Last week, US President Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon to intensify strikes in Yemen and warned that the Houthis would be “completely annihilated” if they continued their attacks. The UK has also taken part in the strikes, with the Defense Ministry saying it targeted a Houthi-controlled facility.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accused Iran of arming the Houthis and warned there would be consequences. Tehran denied the claims. The US, however, announced sweeping sanctions on countries buying Iranian oil or petrochemicals on Thursday, citing Tehran’s alleged role in fueling conflict in the Middle East, among other things.
Russia has urged Washington to halt its strikes on Yemen. In a phone call in March with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called for an immediate end to the use of force and urged all sides to engage in political dialogue.
13:15 GMT
Lebanon-based Hezbollah has called the Houthi missile strike on Ben Gurion Airport a “heroic attack” that highlighted the failure of US and British efforts to weaken Yemen.
“This heroic attack confirms once again their inability to break the solid will of the Yemeni people or push them to retreat from their honorable position in supporting Gaza, in confronting the war of extermination waged by the Zionist enemy against innocent civilians,” a Hezbollah spokesman said in a statement, as cited by the media.
The group added the strike should serve as a call to action for all Arab and Islamic nations to mobilize their resources in support of Gaza.
- 12:54 GMT
Shares of Israeli airlines El Al and Israir have surged after the Houthi missile strike near Ben Gurion Airport prompted several foreign carriers to suspend flights to Tel Aviv.
El Al stock jumped 6.9%, extending its gains to nearly 40% this year. Israir shares rose by 3.8%.
Major foreign airlines, including Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Wizz Air, and Air France, suspended service to Tel Aviv through at least Tuesday. Air Europa also canceled a scheduled flight from Madrid on Monday, citing security concerns.
12:38 GMT
Yemeni independent researcher and journalist Hussein Al Bukhaiti has told RT that, despite threats, Israel is unlikely to inflict further damage on Yemen following weeks of US strikes that “have bombed every city in Yemen” and “killed and injured hundreds of Yemeni civilians.”
He said the missile strike on Ben Gurion Airport exposed the weakness of Israel’s air defenses, despite having four layers of protection. “So there is nothing actually that Israel could bring to stop a Yemeni attack against Israel… We know that the Israeli regime has targeted Sana’a airport months ago, and this is actually a kind of response,” he said.
Al Bukhaiti suggested the missile used in the strike may be a “new type of hypersonic missile,” which could explain why Israeli defense systems failed to intercept it. He also claimed the missile deliberately missed the airport terminal as a warning.
“This is kind of a message to the Israeli regime to close that airport, and I believe that if there is any coming attack... it will hit directly the building in that airport because Yemen now is at war against Israel,” he said.
12:22 GMT
Both the Israeli Air Force’s long-range Arrow air defense system and the US-supplied THAAD system failed to intercept the Houthi missile that hit Ben Gurion Airport, local media have reported, citing defense sources.
Washington deployed the THAAD system to Israel last year amid heightened tensions with Iran. The IDF said it is investigating the incident.
- 11:58 GMT
The US has targeted Houthi training camps in the Khamis Bani Saad area of Al Mahwit Governorate, northwest of the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, on Sunday, Al Arabiya has reported, citing sources. The strikes reportedly resulted in dozens of casualties.
- 10:58 GMT
Israeli journalist and political analyst Amir Oren has told RT that while Israelis are not fearful, Sunday’s strike on Ben Gurion Airport left many “concerned.”
He said Houthi missiles have targeted Israel before and were largely repelled by air defense, but this latest attack’s proximity to a major strategic site alarmed the public. “They were complacent because of the success up to now,” he said.
Oren added that Israel could consider striking Iran in response, as both West Jerusalem and Washington accuse Tehran of arming the Houthis, a claim the Iranian authorities deny. “[The US] has already undertaken a thousand missions against the Houthis, causing some damage, but not able to stop them from launching their attacks,” he said. “So the next probable target could be Iran, sponsoring Yemen, but this would take a decision coordinated with Washington.”
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