Houthis in Eilat? Cops Called to Filming of Satire Show

Jerusalem, 19 December, 2023 (TPS) -- A skit for a top-rated Israeli satirical television program portraying Houthi rebel fighters entering the southern Israeli city of Eilat caused concerned residents to summon police to the scene on Tuesday.

The skit, which will be aired Tuesday night on “Eretz Nehederet,” (Hebrew for “Wonderful Country”), involves two uniformed, flag-waving members of Yemen’s Ansar Allah militia coming to get an up-close look at the resort city, which has been targeted by the Houthi drones and missiles over the last two months.

The police officers who arrived at the scene immediately understood what was going on and left.

Keshet Media Group, which produces the satire program, clarified that the filming had been coordinated with the Eilat Municipality.

Earlier this month, the popular tv show mocked Hamas leaders for living in extravagant luxury in Qatar while visiting destruction on the Gaza Strip. Another skit called out U.N. Women for its prolonged silence over the rape of Israeli women during Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.

The United States is launching a multinational force to counter the maritime threat posed by Iran-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen.

“This is an international challenge that demands collective action,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced early Tuesday in Bahrain.

“Therefore, today I am announcing the establishment of Operation Prosperity Guardian, an important new multinational security initiative.”

Major shipping companies have suspended operations through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in recent days amid daily drone and ballistic missile attacks emanating from Houthi-controlled Yemen. The rebels have also attempted to attack Israeli territory multiple times after declaring their support for Hamas terrorists fighting Israeli forces in Gaza.

Austin said that the international mission will include the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain.

Bahrain is the only Arab country to publicly sign on to the initiative.