Houthis vow major retaliation for Israeli port strike

Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Sunday promised a “huge” retaliation against Israel for a deadly strike on the port of Hodeida, as regional fallout widens from months of war in Gaza.

The Israeli strike, the first claimed by Israel in Yemen, set oil tanks ablaze at the vital port and came a day after the first fatal attack by the Houthis in Israel.

On Sunday, Israel said it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen and struck targets in southern Lebanon. Residents of southern Gaza reported combat in the Rafah area.

The fighting across the region came ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip this week to Washington, which has been trying to secure a ceasefire in the more than nine-month war between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in Gaza.

On Sunday, Netanyahu’s office said he was sending a negotiating team — it was unclear where — for new talks on a deal under which hostages held by Hamas would be freed.

But Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry warned Israel’s attack on Hodeida “aggravates the current tension in the region and halts the ongoing efforts to end the war in Gaza.”

Dozens have been killed since Saturday across Gaza, the civil defense agency in the Hamas-run territory said, including in strikes on homes in the central Nuseirat and Bureij areas and near southern Khan Yunis.

Residents said a major operation was underway in a district west of Rafah, where they reported heavy artillery and clashes.

On Sunday, Abdul Malik al-Huthi, chief of the Iran-backed group, said the Hodeida strikes would lead to “further escalation and more attacks targeting Israel.” He said the deadly Houthi drone attack on Tel Aviv had opened “a new phase” in operations.

Huthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the rebels’ “response to the Israeli aggression against our country is inevitably coming and will be huge.”

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the fire left raging by the strikes on rebel-held Hodeida port “is seen across the Middle East and the significance is clear.”

Gallant warned of further operations if the Houthis “dare to attack us” after the rebel strike hit Tel Aviv, at least 1,800 kilometers from Yemen.

It appeared to be the first to pierce Israel’s intricate air defenses but an analyst said Houthi drones do not pose a “strategic threat” to Israel.

In Hodeida, six people were killed and 83 wounded, health officials said in a statement carried by Houthi media.