Israel expands Gaza offensive and strikes Houthis in Yemen

The moves came as US President Donald Trump wrapped up his tour of the Middle East.

A ​pro-Palestinian​ rally in San’a​, Yemen, on Friday. Picutre: Mohammed Huwais/AFP/Getty Images

The Israeli military said it had begun launching strikes in the Gaza Strip as part of an expanded offensive and had bombed Houthi-controlled ports of Yemen, moves that came as US President Donald Trump wrapped up a trip to the Middle East.

In Gaza, the military said that over the past day it had been conducting strikes and mobilising troops to pursue its goals in the enclave. The military had earlier said its air force had struck more than 150 targets throughout the strip.

Israeli strikes hit Beit Lahiya and the nearby Jabaliya camp, killing scores, according to Palestinian health authorities. The military didn’t respond to a request for comment on the Beit Lahiya strikes.

Earlier this month, Israel’s security cabinet approved a new ground operation to occupy territory in Gaza, signalling a strategic shift in Israel’s approach to the fight against Hamas that began after the Oct. 7, 2023, militant-led attacks on Israel. That decision came after the end of a fragile ceasefire earlier this year.

In Yemen, the Israeli military said it had struck the Hodeidah and Salif ports, which it said were used to transfer weapons. Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel had severely damaged the ports and threatened to kill Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi if the militant group continued to launch attacks on Israel.

“If the Houthis continue to fire rockets at the State of Israel they will be seriously harmed and we will also harm their leaders,” Katz said, citing the Houthi leader by name.

The Houthis in turn promised to continue their attacks on Israel in support of Palestinians in Gaza. The Houthis have previously said they would stop firing on Israel if a ceasefire is reached in Gaza.

“The Zionist enemy’s warplanes launched aggressive airstrikes on the ports of Hodeidah,” Nasr al-Din Amir, a Houthi spokesman, said in a message on Telegram.

“These people will neither kneel nor retreat, and will not abandon Gaza – even if the entire world does,” he said.

Houthi authorities said one person was killed and nine were injured in the Israeli strikes.

The Yemen strikes took place after Trump departed the Middle East following a tour that included visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates but not Israel.

Trump surprised Israel when he announced a truce with the Houthis in early May after weeks of an aggressive bombing campaign against the group and after the Houthis agreed to halt their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and nearby waters.

Trump also struck a deal with Hamas that freed the last living American hostage in Gaza this week, a deal that didn’t include the Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel had issued evacuation warnings on Sunday regarding three ports in Yemen, something it typically does before conducting an attack, though it didn’t strike until Trump had left the region.

“The [Trump] administration, already frustrated by the increasingly hawkish and aggressive stance of the Netanyahu government, was keen to avoid any major escalation that could overshadow the visit,” said Mohammed al-Basha, founder of US-based Middle East security advisory Basha Report.

The Houthis have continued to lob missiles and drones at Israel, and recently struck near Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, leading to cancellations of flights by many international airlines and damaging Israel’s economy.

A video that was shared online Friday showed plumes of gray smoke at the Hodeideh port. The video was verified by Storyful, which is owned by News Corp, the parent company of The Wall Street Journal.

While Israel has killed leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based militant group, in a series of dramatic strikes in recent years, its military has less intelligence on the Houthis, as it only started focusing on them more recently.

Israeli intelligence Unit 8200 has focused on Israel’s longtime foes in Lebanon, Syria and Iran, and is now working to catch up, according to people familiar with the matter.

“If US forces, after 50 days of a sustained US-led campaign, were unable to locate or eliminate Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, it is doubtful that the task would be any easier for the IDF,” Basha said, referring to the Israel Defence Forces.

Dow Jones Newswires