Netanyahu: Whoever harms Israel will pay a heavy price

"We did this in response to the Houthis' recurring attacks on civilian targets in Israel," he noted.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF DECEMBER 19, 2024 15:48 Updated: DECEMBER 19, 2024 15:50

(Illustrative) Benjamin Netanyahu over a backdrop of the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike in Yemen (photo credit: Canva, MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST, Photo by Handout/Houthi Media Center via Getty Images)

Whoever harms Israel will pay a heavy price, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, addressing Israel's strikes on Houthi terror targets in Hodeidah and Yemen's capital of Sana'a, among others, in the early hours of Thursday. 

"We did this in response to the Houthis' recurring attacks on civilian targets in Israel," he noted, adding that the Houthis had "struck last night a school in Ramat Gan."

"They do not attack only us; they attack the entire world. They are attacking international shipping and trade routes, so when Israel acts against the Houthis, it is acting on behalf of the entire international community. The Americans understand this aspect, as do many others."

"After Hamas, Hezbollah, Assad's regime in Syria, the Houthis are almost the last branch that is left for Iran's Axis of Evil."

"They learn and will learn the hard way that whoever harms Israel pays for it a heavy price."

רה"מ נתניהו אחרי תקיפת צה"ל בתימן: "החות'ים לומדים והם ילמדו בדרך הקשה, שמי שפוגע בישראל משלם על כך מחיר כבד מאוד"@gilicohen10 @SuleimanMas1 (צילום: עומר מירון, לע"מ) pic.twitter.com/zGw7JmG5jF

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) December 19, 2024

Early Thursday morning, Israel Air Force jets struck targets belonging to the Houthis in Yemen, which were utilized for military purposes, such as the smuggling of Iranian weapons. 

The IAF also targeted energy infrastructure in Sana'a along with various ports. 

The US was notified of Israel's intent to carry out the attacks, a source told The Jerusalem Post.

School damaged in Ramat Gan

According to the IDF, the Houthis have fired over 200 ballistic missiles and over 170 drones at Israel, with most being shot down by the US or Israel but 22 having penetrated Israel.

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The military said on Thursday that an initial investigation carried out by the IAF found that part of the warhead from the missile fired from Yemen exploded and caused damage to a school in Ramat Gan following a partial interception.

Shir Perets, Yonah Jeremy Bob and Amichai Stein contributed to this report.