The Israeli military had earlier reported that Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels had launched a drone attack on southern Israel on Tuesday.
“The UAV (drone) force of the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a specific military operation targeting the industrial zone of the Israeli enemy in the Ashkelon region,” a Huthi military statement said.
The drone “fell in an open area” of Ashkelon, which is located just north of the Gaza Strip, where the Israel-Hamas conflict has been going on for over a year, according to Israel’s military.
According to the Huthis, “a number of drones that have successfully achieved their objectives were used to carry out the attack.”
During the conflict in Gaza, the rebels, who are a part of Iran’s “axis of resistance” against Israel and the US, have fired missiles and drones against Israel on occasion.
Israel retaliated with a massive attack on Yemen’s Hodeida port, which serves as a lifeline for the impoverished nation, after a Huthi drone killed a civilian in Tel Aviv in July.
Huthi media also said that four individuals were killed by Israeli airstrikes in Yemen last month after the rebels claimed to have fired a missile at the international airport in Tel Aviv.
During the Gaza conflict, the Huthis have also engaged in a campaign of harassment against shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, seriously interfering with the crucial trade route.
