Israel strikes Yemen's Houthi-held Hodeida port

Yemen's rebel-controlled media reported Israeli strikes on the port of Hodeida on Tuesday, with the Israeli army saying its navy had hit the area following calls on civilians to evacuate three Houthi-held ports.

"Israeli Navy Missile Ships struck terror targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime in the port of" Hodeida, the Israeli army said in a statement.

"The strikes were carried out to stop the use of the port for military purposes," it said, adding that the port was being "used to transfer weapons".

Al-Masirah TV channel said "two strikes by the Israeli enemy targeted the docks of the port of Hodeida".

In a post on X, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said "we warned the Houthi terror organisation that if they continued firing toward Israel, they would face a powerful response and be subjected to a naval and aerial blockade."

Earlier, Colonel Avichay Adraee, an Israeli army spokesman said that "because of the use of maritime ports by the Houthi terrorist regime, we call on all people present" in the ports of Ras Issa, Hodeida and Salif "to evacuate them immediately for their own security" in an Arabic post on X and Telegram.

Yemen's Houthis have repeatedly launched missiles and drones at Israel since the Gaza war broke out in October 2023.

Airport perimeter strike

The Iran-backed rebels paused their attacks during a two-month Gaza ceasefire that ended in March, but renewed them after Israel resumed its devastating military campaign in the territory.

Israel has carried out several strikes in Yemen in retaliation for the attacks, including on ports and the airport in the capital Sanaa.

Most of the Houthis' projectiles have been intercepted, but one missile fired in early May hit the perimeter of Ben Gurion airport, gouging a hole near its main terminal building and wounding several people in a rare penetration of Israeli air defences.

Following the attack, the group pledged to impose a blockade on Israeli airports. Dozens of international airlines halted flights to Israel immediately after the attack, and some have extended flight suspensions through to July.

Last month, Israeli air strikes blew up the last remaining plane at rebel-held Yemen's international airport in Sanaa, weeks after an earlier attack inflicted major damage.

That month, Israel also threatened to target the Houthi leadership after its air force struck two rebel-held ports.

The Yemeni rebels have been at war with a Saudi-led coalition since 2015 in a conflict that killed hundreds of thousands of people and triggered a major humanitarian crisis in Yemen, although fighting has decreased significantly since a UN-negotiated truce in 2022.

(AFP and TNA staff)