DUBAI, September 27. /TASS/. Yemen's Houthi rebel movement Ansar Allah has struck "military targets" in the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Ashkelon, the group’s spokesman, Yahya Saria, said.

"The Yemeni Armed Forces carried out an operation during which they used a Palestine-2 hypersonic ballistic missile to strike an Israeli enemy military target in the occupied city of Jaffa (Tel Aviv - TASS), as well as a Jaffa drone strike at a military target in the occupied Ashkelon," the spokesman said during an Al Masirah TV broadcast.

Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces' press office reported the interception of a rocket fired from Yemen outside Israeli territory.

With the conflict in the Gaza Strip escalating, the Ansar Allah (Houthi) movement announced that it would conduct strikes on Israeli territory and block pro-Israeli vessels from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until Tel Aviv ceases its military operation in the Palestinian enclave. The Houthis have attacked dozens of civilian vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since mid-November of last year.

In response to Ansar Allah's actions, US officials announced the formation of an international coalition and the preparation of Operation Prosperity Guardian to ensure freedom of navigation and protection of ships in the Red Sea. As a result, UK and US forces began regularly attacking rebel military facilities in various provinces of Yemen.