Sanaa (South24)

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Israel launched intensive airstrikes earlier this morning on vital sites and facilities in Yemen controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi group, in the latest round of mutual escalation between the two sides.

The Israeli army announced that 14 fighter jets carried out the strikes in two stages, the first of which targeted the ports of Hodeidah and Salif and the Ras Issa oil facility on the Red Sea, while the second stage focused on energy facilities in Sanaa, most notably the Hezyaz Central Power Plant.

Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said that the strikes "targeted military sites and logistical facilities of the Houthis," noting that the attack were aimed "to weaken the military capabilities of the Houthis, which have begun to threaten regional security."

The spokesman described the operation as "a strategic response to a series of Houthi attacks targeting ships linked to Israel in the Red Sea." He claimed that the targets included "weapons depots and command and communications centers" used by the Houthis to launch attacks on Israel and its allies.

On the ground, the Houthi-affiliate Al-Masirah channel said that the Israeli raids killed nine people and wounded three others in Sanaa and Hodeidah.

Al-Masirah confirmed that the attacks resulted in extensive damage to the targeted facilities, including the port of Al-Salif and the Ras Issa oil facility, where fuel storage tanks caught fire, while firefighting teams extinguished the fires at the Hezyaz Central Power Plant in Sanaa.

In response to the strikes, the Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Sarea, announced that their forces carried out a "large-scale military attack with Palestine 2 hypersonic missiles targeting two military sites in Tel Aviv."

He said that the Houthi attack was "in response to the Israeli aggression," stressing that "military operations are ongoing and will not stop as long as the escalation continues."

The Israeli operation coincided with the Houthis firing a missile that hit a school in central Israel.

In Tel Aviv, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported that a Houthi missile intercepted by the Israeli Iron Dome system crashed into an empty school building in Ramat Gan, causing extensive material damage but nobody was hurt. The city's mayor said that the school would be demolished and rebuilt.

Israeli media reported that Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz personally supervised the preparations for the attack, and visited the air force base to follow up on the planning and approve the targets. He described the attack as "a large-scale military operation aimed at destroying the logistical and military capabilities of the Houthis."

In a related context, the American newspaper Axios reported that Israel informed the United States (US) in advance of its intention to launch strikes on Yemen, in a move described by diplomatic sources as "an attempt to avoid negative international reactions."

On the regional level, Iran condemned the Israeli attack and described it as a "flagrant violation of international law," and termed the US "a partner in Israeli crimes," according to a statement issued by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

In turn, the spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades in Gaza, Abu Obeida, praised the Houthi attacks against Israel. He called for escalation until the war on Gaza stops.

Yemeni figures condemned the Israeli attacks as targeting the people's infrastructure. Politician Mustafa Ahmed Noman while condemning the strikes, held the Houthis responsible for the "destructive chaos" and the "open invitation" to target Yemen and destroy what remains of its infrastructure.

In the initial official response from Yemen, the Presidential Leadership Council, representing the internationally recognized government of Yemen, has condemned the "Israeli aggression," attributing responsibility for the escalation to the Houthis.

The Presidential Leadership Council during a meeting on December 19, 2024 (Saba news agency).