By The Jerusalem Post (Politics) | Created at 2024-09-29 18:32:55 | Updated at 2024-09-30 03:40:46
9 hours ago
The IDF struck Yemen' Hodeidah and Ras Issa ports, attacking oil reserves and military supplies, sources told The Jerusalem Post.
By YONAH JEREMY BOB, SHIR PERETS, JERUSALEM POST STAFF SEPTEMBER 29, 2024 17:17 Updated: SEPTEMBER 29, 2024 20:28
Thick smoke billows from a raging fire at oil storage tanks a day after Israeli strikes on the port of Yemen's Huthi-held city of Hodeida on July 21, 2024.
(photo credit: AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES)
The IDF hit Yemen's Houthis with the most powerful counter-strike against them of the war on Sunday, even exceeding the massive strike on Hodeidah in July, sources told The Jerusalem Post and the IDF confirmed shortly thereafter.
Dozens of Israeli aircraft participated in the operation, striking 1,800 kilometers from Israeli territory, after the Houthis fired three ballistic missiles on the Tel Aviv and central Israel areas in recent weeks, including one on Saturday.
The targets included power plants and a seaport used to import oil, which the Houthis used to transfer Iranian weapons to the region, in addition to military supplies and oil, IDF reported.
According to Hezbollah-affiliated outlet Al Mayadeen and confirmed by the IDF, the targets of the strikes were oil reserves in Ras Issa and also the port of Hodeidah.
⚡️عاجل⚡️ غارات اسرائيلية على مدينة الحديدة اليمنية قبل لحظات... pic.twitter.com/Y45cCSy5gD
— رؤى لدراسات الحرب (@Roaastudies) September 29, 2024"Israeli aggression targets the city of Hodeidah," Houthi-owned Lebanese media Al Masirah posted.
The Houthi-run Al Masirah announced that the Civil Defense has begun working to put out the fire at the current power station, which was caused by the strikes.
In a statement published to the Al Masira X/Twitter account, visual spokesperson for the Houthis Mohammad Abdul Salam said, “The American-backed Zionist aggression is condemned, denounced and rejected and cannot affect the will of the Yemeni people. What the Yemeni people confirm in their million weekly demonstrations is that they will not abandon Gaza and Lebanon.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Nasser Kanaani, has condemned the strikes, saying they targeted a power plant and fuel tanks. Reuters reported.
In the situational assessment during the strikes in Yemen, Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi said, “We know how to reach very far, we know how to reach even farther, and we know how to strike there with precision.”
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“I'm looking at the axis, led by Iran, with Hezbollah as a very central factor,” he continued, “Hezbollah has been hit very hard in the last month, the last two weeks, and the last three days, it has lost its head, and we need to keep hitting Hezbollah hard. This is the main focus, and we must also adapt our tools for other places."
Commanding Officer of the Israeli Air Force Tomer Bar said in a statement, "Anyone who tries to harm the civilians of the State of Israel – we will reach them.”
IAF F-15 fighter jets take off from the 'Tel Nof' Airbase to carry out the strike in Yemen, September 29, 2024. (credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
Yemeni oil company statement
Al Masirah reported that the Yemeni Oil Company issued a statement reassuring citizens that all necessary precautions had been taken, stressing that the supply in all areas under their control was completely stable.
The company warned against creating a new oil crisis in the capital, Sana'a, and the rest of the governorates, explaining that it had previously taken precautions necessary for any emergency.
Hodeidah's electricity station and airport have both been targeted
Additionally, Al Mayadeen reported that Hodeidah's electricity station and airport have both been targeted by IDF strikes.
The IDF said its intelligence arm selected targets based on where Iran has been delivering weapons to the Houthis, mixing civilian locations with military use to then attack Israel.
The IDF added that the Houthis have been attacking Israel throughout this past year, not only this past month.
Over the year, the Houthis launched many ballistic missiles and drones at Eilat. In July, a drone from the Houthis killed a civilian in Tel Aviv.
Saturday's missile attack triggered sirens across central Israel, including in Tel Aviv, and although shrapnel was recovered on Route 375 near Tzur Hadassah, no injuries were reported.
Yemeni casualties
Several hours after the initial strike, Al Masirah claimed that four people had died from the strikes, with an additional 33 injured.
