Israel and Yemen braced for wider war after escalation of hostilities

Sirens sounded in the Red Sea port of Eilat on Sunday morning as a Houthi missile was shot down

Smoke rises from the site of Israeli air strikes in the port city of Hodeidah, Yemen in this handout photo released July 20, 2024. Reuters

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Houthi-controlled areas were bracing for the prospect of regular missile, drone and aerial attacks on Sunday, after the first Israeli air strikes in Yemen since the war in Gaza started.

Residents of Houthi-controlled Hodeidah woke up to palls of black smoke over their port city, while in Eilat, Israel, air-raid sirens sounded.

Both Yemenis and Israelis are now facing a wider war between the two countries.

A resident of Hodeidah told The National the entire city was engulfed in smoke, the density of which increased closer to the port hours after Israel's counter-strike on Saturday. The attacks left fuel depots blazing, turning parts of the horizon fiery red and black.

The Israeli strikes followed a Houthi explosive drone attack in Tel Aviv in the early hours of Friday, which killed a man in her home and injured four others.

At least six people were killed and 80 injured in Israel’s counter-strike, according to the country’s health ministry.

The foreign ministries of Kuwait and Oman have denounced the unprecedented Israeli attacks, which Kuwait said contribute to the “deterioration of the security situation in the region and undermine international efforts aimed at ending the cycle of violence”.

In a statement on social platform X, Oman described the bombing as a representation of "a new escalation of tension in the region that would further complicate the regional situation and hinder efforts towards calming it".

Fuel blazes at port

Petrol stations reopened in Hodeidah on Sunday morning after an announcement that there are reserves in the Yemeni port and no chance of fuel shortages. Electricity supplies, which were cut off overnight, returned in the morning, although some commercial buildings were still reporting no power.

Amal, 36, is married to an employee who works in Ras Issa port, which was hit hard in the Israeli attacks.

"I heard the explosions like everyone else, and we went up to the roof and saw the smoke. It wasn't hard to determine that the strikes were at the port."

Israel strikes Houthi targets in Yemen after deadly attack on Tel Aviv

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"My husband works in Ras Issa, and I feared that the facilities there might have been hit too. I broke down, and my children were scared for their father. It was a nightmare I will never forget," she said.

"He arrived home this morning after evacuating the facilities and stopping work until the situation calms down. But I am not reassured and do not expect the situation to calm down."

As Yemen's principal port, Hodeidah has been crucial for the survival of millions of citizens, making it a focal point of humanitarian efforts and military conflict.

Even before the war, it handled most imports in a country where 90 per cent of food had to be imported. But after Hodeidah was taken over by Iran-backed Houthi militias, Yemen's internationally recognised government has long accused the rebel movement of controlling the distribution of supplies from the port, deciding who benefits from foreign aid.

A major element of contention in the Yemeni conflict has been the restrictions on the import of fuel and humanitarian goods into Yemen, where millions of people are on the brink of famine.

Early last month, US and UK forces carried out joint air strikes on Hodeidah's airport and another attack was launched on the seaport of Salif to the north, in retaliation for the Houthis' targeting of shipping vessels in the Red Sea.

Eilat alert

Israel was also on high alert on Sunday, with air raid sirens sounding in Eilat after the air strike on Hodeidah. Eilat has frequently been a target of Houthi cruise missiles, drones and ballistic missiles.

Both sides are now embroiled in an unprecedented exchange of fire.

Amid fears of the Israel-Gaza conflict spreading across the region, Saudi Arabia on Sunday said it had no role in Saturday’s Israeli attack on Yemen.

Saudi Ministry of Defence spokesman Turki Al Malki said Riyadh “will not allow its airspace to be infiltrated by any party”.

On Sunday, Israel said it had shot down a Houthi missile.

Wider war threat

Israeli leaders said retaliation would follow any more Houthi attacks.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hodeidah was a legitimate military target. “The port we attacked is not an innocent port,” he said. “It was used as an entry point for deadly weapons supplied to the Houthis by Iran.”

Defence Minister Yoav Gallant also issued a statement directed at the Houthis but with an implicit threat against their backer Iran and Tehran's regional allies.

“The Houthis attacked us over 200 times. The first time that they harmed an Israeli citizen, we struck them. And we will do this in any place where it may be required.”

“The fire that is currently burning in Hodeidah is seen across the Middle East and the significance is clear,” he added.