Houthis Ramp Up Threats to Enforce Air Blockade on Israel

Houthi Military Spokesman Yahya Sarie announced on Sunday night the implementation of a full air blockade on Israel, targeting airports, including Ben Gurion Airport, in response to Israel’s escalating military actions in Gaza. Sarie stated that the Houthis’ primary focus will be to disrupt air traffic by attacking airports, urging all airlines flying to Israel to take these threats into account moving forward.

A senior official in southern Yemen told Israel Hayom in response to the Houthis’ threat against Ben Gurion Airport: “This group only understands the language of death. There is no other solution but to use overwhelming force through genuine support for the southern armed forces and the Yemeni national army, alongside continued U.S. airstrikes.”

A ballistic missile launched from Yemen on Sunday struck near the main terminal of Israel’s international airport, only a few miles from Tel Aviv, after the IDF failed to intercept it. The attack, carried out by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia, led to a mass temporary suspension of flights in and out of Israel (International Airlines Obey Houthis, Cancel Flights to Israel).

An investigation by the Air Force revealed that the interception of the missile failed due to a technical issue with the Arrow interceptor missile, rather than a malfunction in the system itself.

Following the attack, Prime Minister Netanyahu and top defense officials convened for discussions, with Israel signaling its intent to take military action in Yemen in response to the recent series of missile launches.

In a video posted to his Telegram channel, Netanyahu stated: “We attacked in the past, and we will attack in the future. This is not ‘one blow and we are done.’ There will be more strikes.” His official page on X also emphasized, “Israel will respond to the Houthi attack on Ben Gurion Airport and—at a time and place of our choosing’—also against the Iranians.”

Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, responded to the missile strike by declaring, “Anyone who hits us, we will hit them seven times stronger.”

Later, Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated that the Houthi attacks originate from Iran, vowing that Israel would retaliate both against the Houthis and Iran “at a time and place of our choosing.”

Overnight, the United States launched strikes on dozens of targets across Yemen, hitting weapons depots, hideouts, and Houthi outposts. The attacks spanned multiple provinces, including Sana’a, Saada, Abar, and Al-Hodeidah. The Ras Issa fuel port was also targeted again in the operation.

Noa Lazimi, a researcher at the Misgav Institute for National Security, told Makor Rishon on Sunday that the Houthi threat is far from new, even if many in Israel only became aware of the group following the outbreak of the Iron Sword War.

“The Houthis have a deep-rooted ideological opposition to the West, which aligns them with Iran and Hamas,” she said. “But their hostility toward Israel goes beyond ideology. They’re not merely proxies of the Iranian regime—they’re strategic partners. The Houthis aren’t blindly carrying out Tehran’s orders; they’re pursuing their own independent agenda, primarily aimed at expanding their control over Yemen. They already control around a third of the country’s territory and over 70% of its population.”

Lazimi warned that the recent surge in Houthi missile launches cannot be ignored. “The IDF cannot sit back while this terrorist group targets our civilians and strategic assets,” she stressed. “This isn’t a situation to take lightly. Israel must restore its deterrence. If it continues to hold back, it risks further erosion. Minister Katz’s statement that anyone who harms us will be struck sevenfold is spot on. We need to return to the kind of images where flames rise from the port of Hodeidah. Statements alone are not enough.”

She concluded, “We already understand that airstrikes have limited impact. In my view, only a large-scale ground operation in Yemen—coordinated closely with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and of course, our key partner, the United States—can bring about meaningful change on the ground.”

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