Tel Aviv Hit By Missile Fired From Yemen

A missile fired from Yemen hit Tel Aviv overnight into Saturday, Israeli authorities said, in a rare instance of a failed interception over the city.

Israel’s military said the projectile landed in Tel Aviv’s southern Jaffa area, adding that attempts to intercept a missile from Yemen failed shortly after sirens sounded in the area. More than a dozen people sustained minor injuries, according to emergency services, but no fatalities were reported.

Israel’s second-largest city, Tel Aviv, is the country’s commercial and diplomatic centre. Direct hits from projectiles fired at the coastal city are rare due to Israel’s extensive air defences.

After the strike, the Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen said they fired a hypersonic ballistic missile labelled “Palestine 2” at an Israeli military target in the Jaffa area early on Saturday.

“The missile struck its target accurately, and the defences and interception systems failed to intercept it,” the militant group said in a statement.

At least 16 people sustained minor injuries from glass fragments that broke in nearby buildings, Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency service said.

In addition, 14 victims were treated for slight injuries they sustained seeking shelter, as well as seven panic victims.

Since Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza started in October last year, the country has come under fire from missiles and rockets from Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen, both Iran-backed militant groups, as well as from Iran itself. Almost all of the projectiles have been intercepted by Israel’s air defences.

CNN/Shakirat Sadiq