Israeli Airstrikes Hit Yemen’s Capital After Warning Civilians To Evacuate

Israel has launched a wave of airstrikes on Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, targeting key infrastructure including the city’s international airport, the Israeli military confirmed on Tuesday.

“A short while ago, IDF fighter jets struck and dismantled Houthi terrorist infrastructure at the main airport in Sanaa, fully disabling the airport,” the Israeli military stated, adding that several major power facilities around Sanaa were also hit in the operation.

This marks the first Israeli assault on Yemeni territory in months and comes a day after the Houthis launched a ballistic missile that reportedly reached near Tel Aviv’s international airport.

Despite multiple interception attempts, the missile managed to evade Israel’s air defenses, the military said.

Prior to the strikes, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued an unusual evacuation alert for Sanaa’s international airport — a first of its kind for Yemen, which lies more than 1,000 miles from Israeli territory.

“Failure to evacuate the area endangers your lives,” warned Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson, in a message posted on social media.

The strikes follow an earlier round of Israeli attacks on Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah and a nearby cement plant.

According to the Houthi-controlled Ministry of Health, at least one person was killed and 35 others were injured during the strike on the factory in Bajil, east of Hodeidah.

Israel previously targeted the Sanaa international airport in December, an attack that left at least three dead and over 30 injured, according to reports from the Houthi-run al-Masirah satellite TV.