A ballistic missile launched at Israel Friday night by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was intercepted by air defenses, the Israel Defense Forces said.
There were no reports of impacts or injuries in the attack, which triggered sirens in several settlements in the southern West Bank and communities near the Dead Sea in southern Israel.
The Houthis took responsibility for the attack, claiming to have aimed at a “sensitive target” in the Beersheba area, dozens of kilometers away from where sirens sounded.
It was the second ballistic missile the Houthis launched at Israel in the past three days, after a missile fired on Wednesday night fell short outside the country’s borders, according to military officials. The IDF identified that launch, but no sirens sounded in Israel because the missile did not pose a threat.
On Monday, Israeli Air Force drones struck Yemen’s Houthi-controlled Hodeida port in response to the Iran-backed group’s continued attacks on Israel.
The army said in a statement at the time that the airstrikes destroyed “military infrastructure of the Houthi terror regime” at the western Yemen port, after attempts were made by the Houthis to repair areas previously targeted by Israel in response to missile and drone attacks.
Yemenis brandish their rifles and chant slogans during an anti-Israel and US, pro-Palestinian rally in the Houthi-run capital Sanaa on July 11, 2025. (Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP)
Monday’s sortie marked the thirteenth time Israel has attacked Yemen, located some 1,800 kilometers away.
The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre.
Traffic through the Red Sea, a critical waterway for the world’s oil and commodities, has markedly dropped due to the targeting of ships, which the Houthis claim are linked to Israel.
The group, which agreed to a deal with the US in May to stop targeting American ships, appeared to step up attacks on maritime traffic earlier this month, destroying two ships and killing several sailors.
The Houthis held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, they had fired over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of attack drones and cruise missiles at Israel, including one that killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July 2024, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.
Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis have launched 65 ballistic missiles and at least 17 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.
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