Missile From Yemen Falls in Central Israel, 23 Lightly Wounded; IDF: Interception Failed -
A missile fired from Yemen fell in central Israel overnight on Satruday, lightly wounding 23 people.
A missile launched at central Israel, on Friday night, and the attempts at interception by the IDF.
The IDF stated that more than one intercepting system failed to thwart the missile, and footage on social media seems to show that at least two interceptors were fired, but failed to hit it.
Israel's Magedn David Adom rescue service said that the wounded, including a child, were taken to a nearby hospital.
- Explained: Who are Yemen's Houthis, and why are they attacking Israel?
- Israeli army's Arabic spokesman trades barbs with Houthi leader after night of attacks
- All eyes on Somaliland: the tiny African state that's key to Israel's war on Houthi terror
A large crater several meters deep was formed at the impact site, a playground between residential buildings in Jaffa, south of Tel Aviv, and dozens of buildings were damaged.
The fire department stated that the extensive damage was caused by a blast wave, but no building was hit directly.
A crater was formed after a missile fell in a playground between residential buildings in Jaffa, on Friday night.Credit: Tomer Appelbaum
Many residents reported they didn't have time to reach a bomb shelter, with a loud explosion heard mere seconds after sirens were activated.
Beth Shahar, a local resident, described the moments of impact: "I put on my shoes, all the windows exploded, and I went downstairs, but I didn't make it to the shelter in time. My apartment is full of glass, and all the windows were blown out. I knew a missile had fallen here," she said.
Her neighbor, Odelya, added: "My entire house was damaged, I don't know what to do. I have nowhere to sleep. All my shutters and tiles are on the floor. I don't have a home."
Omar, who also lives in the area, said: "We heard the siren and then there was an explosion. All the windows and shutters fell. I still can't process what happened. We didn't make it to the shelter." Another neighbor, Katya, said she couldn't enter her house because the door wouldn't open due to the blast wave.
The missile launch comes two days after another missile was launched from Yemen at central Israel.
On Thursday night, a missile exploded in Ramat Gan, causing significant damage to a school and nearby cars. In response, Israel carried out a series of airstrikes on Yemen's capital, Sana'a, and the port city of Hodeidah, bombing military and national infrastructure.