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Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group has confirmed the first missile attack against Israel since the war with Tehran, initiated by Israel and the United States a month ago, began.
The group stated that it launched ballistic missiles targeting “sensitive Israeli military sites,” asserting this was in response to Israeli attacks on Iran, Lebanon, Iraq, and Palestinian territories.
They have declared their operations will continue until all fronts cease hostilities.
Earlier, the Israeli Defense Forces reported successfully intercepting missiles fired from Yemen.
A New Front Opens in the Conflict
According to Joe Floto, BBC’s Middle East bureau chief in Jerusalem, the Houthis have expressed support for Iran for several weeks, making their active participation in the conflict anticipated.
Iran continues to provide the Houthi group with military, economic, and political support.
In a televised address last night, Houthi spokesperson Yahya Sari announced their fighters are ready for military engagement.
He further warned that their forces would be active if new partners join Washington and Israel’s anti-Iran alliance or if the ‘Red Sea’ were used as a theater for aggressive operations against Iran.
Israeli forces reported missile launches from Yemen early Saturday morning.
The intervention by the Houthis has raised concerns about the opening of a new front of conflict in the Arabian Peninsula.
Floto highlights the primary concern as potential attacks on maritime traffic routes in the Red Sea, a key waterway between Northeast Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The Houthis have already targeted this area following the October 7th attack in Israel.
In 2025, former U.S. President Donald Trump collaborated with the UK to conduct bombings aimed at halting these attacks.
The military campaign that lasted several weeks targeted thousands of sites and resulted in the death of numerous promising Houthi commanders, after which a ceasefire was brokered through dialogue.
Concerns Over Worsening Situation
Farea Al-Muslimi, a researcher at the UK’s Chatham House, emphasizes the significance of the Houthi’s involvement given their strategic location at the mouth of the Red Sea, a critically important international trade route.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today program, she noted the Houthis have yet to explicitly state an intention to attack this narrow maritime passage, possibly to avoid triggering a new wave of American attacks.
However, she warned that further disruptions to maritime routes – alongside the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz – would be a nightmare, exacerbating an already dire situation.
A Growing Challenge for Israel
Diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams notes that renewed Houthi offensives would represent a serious problem for Israel.
Following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict in mid-October 2023, the Houthis began missile attacks on Israel, though these caused limited damage.
In July 2024, a Houthi drone breached Israeli air defenses, striking a residential area involved in oil management, resulting in the death of one Israeli civilian.
Adams warns that attacks against vessels in the Red Sea by the Houthis could have dramatic consequences.
Currently, with the Strait of Hormuz blocked, Saudi Arabia transports 4 million barrels of oil daily via pipeline to Yanbu on the Red Sea coast.
From Yanbu, oil shipments are delivered by sea through Yemen to markets in southern Asia.
Between November 2023 and early 2025, the Houthi group carried out 200 attacks against vessels in the Red Sea, damaging 30 ships and seizing at least one.
These attacks caused a 50% reduction in maritime traffic between Bab al-Mandab Strait in the south of the Red Sea and the Suez Canal in the north, a significant impact though less severe than the ongoing blockade at the Strait of Hormuz.
Adams states that any renewed disruption in the Red Sea would deeply affect two vital maritime corridors.
