Israel’s military said on Saturday it failed to intercept a “projectile” launched from Yemen that fell near Tel Aviv, with the National Medical Service saying 14 people were lightly injured.
“After sirens sounding a short time ago in central Israel, a projectile launched from Yemen was identified and unsuccessful attempts to intercept it were made,” the Israeli military said on its Telegram channel.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have launched repeated missile attacks against Israel since the war in Gaza began more than a year ago, most of which have been intercepted.
In return, Israel has attacked several targets in Yemen – including ports and energy facilities in areas controlled by the Houthis.
Israeli police said on Saturday, “Some time ago there was a report of weapons falling in a settlement in the Tel Aviv district.”
According to Israeli media, the shell fell in the city of Bnei Brak, east of Tel Aviv.
Israel’s emergency medical service said 14 people were injured.
“Additional teams are at the scene treating a number of people who were injured while walking towards protected areas, as well as treating people suffering from anxiety,” a spokesperson said.
The Houthi rebels say they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians and last week pledged to continue the campaign “until the attack on Gaza stops and the siege is lifted.”
On 9 December, a drone claimed by the Houthis exploded on the top floor of a residential building in the central Israel city of Yavne, causing no casualties.
In July, a Houthi drone strike in Tel Aviv killed an Israeli civilian, prompting retaliatory strikes on the Yemeni port of Hodeidah.
The Houthis also regularly target shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, leading to retaliatory attacks on Houthi positions by American and sometimes British forces.
Rebels said Thursday that nine people were killed in Israeli airstrikes that day after the group fired a missile toward Israel, badly damaging a school.
While Israel has previously attacked targets in Yemen, Thursday’s strike was the first against the rebel-held capital Sanaa.
“The Israeli enemy targeted ports in Hodeida and power stations in Sanaa and nine civilians were martyred as a result of the Israeli offensive,” rebel leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in a lengthy speech broadcast on the rebels’ al-Masirah TV.
Israel said it attacked targets in Yemen after intercepting a missile fired from the country, with rebels later claiming the attack.
Houthi spokesman Yahya Sari said they had fired ballistic missiles at “two specific and sensitive military targets … in the occupied Jaffa area”, referring to the Jaffa area near Tel Aviv.
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