The Houthis later issued a statement on their Telegram channel saying they had aimed at a military target [GETTY]
A rocket fired from Yemen hit an area of Tel Aviv overnight, leaving 16 people slightly injured by shattered glass from nearby windows, the Israeli military said on Saturday.
A further 14 people sustained minor injuries as they rushed to shelters when air raid sirens sounded before the projectile hit just before 4 am Saturday, the military said.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels later issued a statement on their Telegram channel saying they had aimed at a military target, which they did not identify, with a hypersonic ballistic missile.
The attack comes less than two days after a series of Israeli airstrikes on Yemen’s Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, and port city of Hodeida killed at least nine people.
The Israeli strikes came after a Houthi attack in which a long-range missile hit an Israeli school building. The Houthis also claimed a drone strike targeting an unspecified military target in central Israel on Thursday.
The Israeli military says the Iran-backed Houthis have launched over 200 missiles and drones during Israel’s war on Gaza. The Houthis have also been attacking shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden – attacks they say won’t stop until there is a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Israeli strikes Thursday caused “considerable damage” to the Houthi-controlled Red Sea ports “that will lead to the immediate and significant reduction in port capacity,” United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
The port at Hodeida has been key for food shipments into Yemen in its decade-long civil war.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said both sides’ attacks risk further escalation in the region and undermine UN mediation efforts.
