Photo by
Sharon Leibel/TPS-IL on 25 May, 2025
Israel Expands Yemen Campaign with Naval Strike on Houthi Port
Jerusalem, 10 June, 2025 (TPS-IL) -- Israeli Navy missile boats struck targets at the Houthi-controlled port of Hodeida in western Yemen early Tuesday, in what Defense Minister Israel Katz called a direct response to ongoing Houthi attacks on Israel.
“We have warned the Houthi terror organization that if they continue to shoot at Israel, they will face a powerful response and be under a naval and aerial blockade,” Katz said. “This is what we did today, and we will continue to do so in the future.”
The Israel Defense Forces said that the Navy’s ability to operate from close range without needing to return to Israel for refueling provided strategic advantages in targeting the port, which had proven more difficult for the Air Force to hit in previous attacks. Since July 2024, the Air Force has conducted roughly ten strikes on Houthi targets across Yemen, including Sanaa International Airport and other strategic infrastructure.
“The strike was intended to deepen the damage to the military use of the port,” the IDF said. “It continues to be used for terror activity, serving as yet another example of the Houthi terror regime’s cynical exploitation of civilian infrastructure.”
The strike followed a series of ballistic missile and drone attacks by the Houthis, who are backed by Iran. Since the last Israeli airstrike on May 28, the Houthis have launched seven ballistic missiles and at least one drone at Israel. One missile fired late Monday reportedly fell short of its target. In total, since the war began, the Houthis have launched more than 400 projectiles at Israel, though the IDF only began retaliating after a Houthi drone killed an Israeli civilian in Tel Aviv in July 2024.
Israeli air defenses have intercepted most of the Houthi missiles and drones.
Several major international airlines canceled flights to Tel Aviv on May 4 after a ballistic missile fired from Yemen struck within Ben Gurion International Airport’s grounds — the first time a missile has landed inside the airport complex.
On Monday night, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee warned Yemenis to evacuate the ports of Hodeida, Ras Isa, and Salif.
Media outlets affiliated with the Houthis reported two strikes on the port of Hodeida Tuesday morning, marking the first naval assault by Israel on the city since the start of the conflict. “Israel’s long hand in the air and at sea will reach everywhere,” Katz said following the operation.
Tuesday’s attack marks the tenth Israeli strike in Yemen since Hamas’s deadly assault on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7, when at least 1,180 people were killed and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage. Of the 55 remaining hostages, 33 are believed to be dead.
