Israel confirms attack in western Yemen

***The Israeli army reported that several “military targets” were hit. At least 80 people were reported injured.

The Israeli military said Saturday it had struck several Houthi targets in western Yemen following a deadly drone attack by the rebel group in Tel Aviv the previous day.

The Israeli offensive appeared to be the first on Yemeni soil since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October, and threatened to open a new front in the region in Israel’s fight once morest Iran-linked groups.

Several “military targets” were hit in the western port city of Hodeidah, a Houthi stronghold, the Israeli army said, adding that its strike was in response to “hundreds of attacks” once morest Israel in recent months.

“The Houthis attacked us more than 200 times. The first time they injured an Israeli citizen, we hit them. And we will do so wherever necessary,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement.

Yemen’s health ministry said 80 people were injured in a preliminary assessment of the attacks in Hodeidah, most of them with serious burns.

The Israeli military said it carried out the strikes on its own and “our friends were brought up to date.” An Israeli military official did not specify how many locations were targeted, but told reporters that the port is the main entry point for Iranian weapons. The source did not say whether it was Israel’s first strike in Yemen.

Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam wrote on social media site X that Yemen was the target of a “blatant Israeli aggression” that targeted fuel storage facilities and the province’s power plant.

With information from AP