DOHA, May 22. /TASS/. Houthi rebels from the Yemen-based Ansar Allah movement have attacked the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv using a ballistic missile, said Yahya Saria, the movement’s military spokesman.
"The missile forces <…> carried out a military operation, targeting <…> Ben Gurion Airport in the occupied city of Jaffa [Tel Aviv] with a Zolfaghar ballistic missile," he told the Houthi-owned Al Masirah TV channel.
According to Saria, the operation "successfully achieved its goal", the airport's operations "were halted for about an hour" due to the strike. In addition, Yemeni rebels struck two locations in Israel's cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa with drones.
The press office of Israel's army said that an air alert had been announced in a number of areas across the country. Shortly afterward, the Israeli military reported that the missile had been intercepted successfully.
No information about possible fall of debris or related damage was reported. According to the National Emergency Medical Services, paramedics confirmed no reports of injuries.
On May 6, US leader Donald Trump announced that the Houthis had agreed to stop attacking ships in the Red Sea and therefore US forces would not strike Houthi targets in Yemen. Shortly after Trump’s statement, Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi said that the Houthis had agreed on a ceasefire in Yemen thanks to his country’s mediation. According to the top Omani diplomat, the agreement assumed that the Houthis will cease assaults on vessels transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, including American ones.
However, Mahdi al-Mashat, head of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, warned that the rebels "will not abandon their support for Gaza" and will continue to launch attacks on Israeli territory in solidarity with the Palestinians.