Egypt Daily News – The Israeli army confirmed that multiple attempts to intercept a missile launched from Yemen failed, resulting in the missile landing near Ben Gurion Airport. This incident led to a temporary suspension of flights and train services to the airport, which have since resumed. While the Houthis have previously launched missiles toward Israel, this marks the first time a missile has landed so close to the country’s main international airport.
According to Israeli media reports, the missile, fired by Yemen’s Houthi movement (also known as Ansar Allah), landed at Ben Gurion Airport, causing several injuries and a large crater estimated at 25 meters deep. Following the impact, the Israeli defense establishment launched an investigation into the incident, amid high-level security concerns about the failure of both American THAAD and Israeli Arrow (Hetz) missile defense systems to intercept the projectile.
Israeli authorities responded by suspending air traffic at Ben Gurion Airport and banning access to the site. Channel 12 reported significant structural damage near Terminal 3 and quoted emergency services as saying eight people were injured, one moderately. Civil aviation officials said several international carriers including Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian, and others cancelled flights to Tel Aviv.
Amid rising alarm, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened emergency consultations, and a scheduled meeting of the Security Cabinet was postponed. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed a strong response, declaring, “Whoever hits us, we will strike back sevenfold.”
Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed responsibility, stating that the attack was carried out with a hypersonic ballistic missile and successfully struck its target. He warned international airlines to avoid Ben Gurion Airport, calling it unsafe. Saree added that the operation was part of the group’s continued resistance against American involvement in the region and in support of the Palestinian people.
Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz blamed Iran, asserting that it was ultimately responsible for missile attacks on Israel and must be held accountable. He called for a harsh Israeli response against Tehran.
In response to the missile strike, Israeli forces reportedly carried out retaliatory airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen, particularly around the port and airport in Al Hudaydah. Israel’s military claims that these strikes were in retaliation for hundreds of attacks launched from Yemen over the past few months.
In a developing move, an Israeli-American joint investigation team has been formed to analyze the failure of the missile defense systems and assess how the missile bypassed four layers of Israeli aerial defenses.
