By Clauda Tanios and Tala Ramadan
DUBAI (Reuters) – Israeli warplanes bombed a power station and two ports in Houthi-controlled Yemen on Friday in retaliation for Houthi drone and missile attacks against Israel, and pro-Houthi media said at least one person was killed and nine were injured.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Iran-backed Houthi militia “is paying and will continue to pay a heavy price for their attacks on us”.
A series of airstrikes targeted the Red Sea port of Ras Issa and six others the major port of Hodeidah, said Al Masirah TV, the main media outlet run by the Houthis, while Harf Sufyan District in Amran province was also hit by airstrikes.
A worker at Ras Issa port was killed and six others were injured, the outlet said.
Earlier, the British security company Ambrey said that the airstrikes in the port of Ras Issa targeted oil storage facilities in the area near shipping facilities, although no merchant ships were reported damaged.
Petroleum supplies are stable, Houthi government spokesman Hashem Sharaf Eddine said after the attack.
Thirteen Airstrikes also targeted the central Hezyaz power station in Yemen's capital Sanaa, Al Masirah TV reported. It also said that three civilians were injured, including the Hezyaz worker, and many homes were damaged.
An Israeli military statement confirmed the targets, saying the power station serves as “a source of energy for the control of the Houthi terrorists in their military operations”. It added that the targets hit were examples of the “Houthis' exploitation of public infrastructure”.
In the past 48 hours, the Houthis shot down three drones at the Israeli commercial center of Tel Aviv and more drones and missiles at the US aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman in the Red Sea, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said.
The Houthis are targeting Israel, hundreds of kilometers to the north and international ships in the waters near Yemen from November 2023 to support Palestinian soldiers in the fight against Israel in Gaza.
Israel has responded with airstrikes on Houthi-held areas in Yemen, as have British and American forces in the region.
Netanyahu said last month that Israel was at the beginning of its campaign against the Houthis.