Middle East War: Missile Falls Near Tel Aviv Airport After Yemeni Strike

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but Yemen's Houthi rebels, allied with the Palestinian movement Hamas, have claimed responsibility for several missile and drone attacks on Israeli territory since the start of the war in Gaza.

"You can see the area right behind us: a crater has formed there, several dozen meters wide and also several dozen meters deep," said the police chief of the central region of Israel, Yair Hezroni, in a video with the airport control tower in the background.

According to Israeli media reports, police are still trying to determine whether the impact was caused by the Yemeni missile or an Israeli counter-missile.

Airport authorities announced the resumption of air traffic after a brief interruption. "Takeoffs and landings have resumed normally. Ben Gurion Airport is open and operational."

Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened to respond to the attack by striking "seven times harder." Israel has already carried out several attacks against Houthi targets in Yemen. "Whoever hits us will be hit seven times harder," he said in a brief statement.

The Houthis, backed by Israel's arch-enemy Iran, had previously claimed responsibility for missile strikes toward the airport, but the army said it had intercepted them. On Friday, they claimed responsibility for firing two missiles at Israel several hours apart, which the Israeli army announced it had intercepted.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree claimed in a video that the group had targeted a military facility in central Israel with "a Palestine 2 hypersonic ballistic missile."

Houthi rebels control large swathes of war-torn Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, more than 1,800 km from Israel's southern border.

Since the start of the Gaza war, sparked by the unprecedented attack on Israel by the Islamist movement Hamas on October 7, 2023, the Houthis have announced attacks against Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza. These rebels have also targeted ships they believe to be linked to Israel in the Red Sea, a key area for global maritime traffic.

After a two-month hiatus, the Houthis resumed attacks against Israel with the resumption of the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip on March 18.