Illustrative image.
A suicide drone reportedly launched by the Houthis (Ansar Allah) from Yemen struck the southern Israeli city of Eilat on September 24, causing casualties.
Videos showing the drone crashing near a hotel in a shopping area of the Red Sea resort city surfaced on social networks shortly after the attack.
Over 20 people were reportedly wounded, including two men who were listed in a serious condition and another who was moderately hurt.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged that an attempt to intercept the drone with two Iron Dome interceptors failed, while noting that sirens had sounded a warning of an attack “according to protocol.” The Israeli Air Force, from its side, said that an investigation into the failure had been launched.
While the Houthis are yet to claim responsibility, there is little doubt about their responsibility as the group was behind an identical drone attack that targeted Eilat just five days earlier.
In addition, footage of the latest attack indicate that it was carried out using a Yafa suicide drone. The Yafa, made by the Houthis, is a larger version of an Iranian suicide drone codenamed by the United States military and intelligence as KAS-04 with an estimated range of around 2,000 kilometers.
The Houthis’ recent attacks were especially insulting for Israel, which stepped up its strikes on Yemen over the past month or so.
In late August, an Israeli attack on the Yemen capital, Sanaa, killed Ahmed al-Rahawi, prime minister of the Houthi-led government, along with other ministers. This month saw even more escalation by Israel, with one strike killing over 30 journalists working in Houthi-run outlets, and another devastating the port of al-Hodeida, which is held by the group.
Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas, a close ally of the Houthis, in the Gaza Strip, the group has launched nearly 90 ballistic missiles and at least 40 drones at Israel.
Following the previous Houthi drone attack on Eilat, Defense Minister Israel Katz vowed to send Abdel-Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the group, to the “depths of hell” and that his group would lose its hold on Sanaa. This threat signaled Israel’s readiness to back an offensive by the forces of the internationally-recognized government in Yemen against the Houthis. Still, this will not likely happen any time soon.
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zionist scum really hate journalists.
not especially, but they hate the truth, so they try to silence everyone telling it.