Israel planning ‘major offensive’ against Yemen: Report
A security official told Hebrew media that the army is waiting for a decision from the political echelon to begin the offensive and ‘put an end’ to Yemeni attacks
Israel is planning a “major offensive” against Yemen and is waiting for a green light from the Israeli political echelon, Israel’s Channel 14 reported on 23 July.
“The Israeli security establishment is working around the clock on a major offensive plan against the Yemeni Ansarallah group, which will put an end to the numerous terrorist incidents and rocket attacks on Israel,” the Hebrew channel said.
“We are building capabilities, and we will know how to activate them once the political echelon makes a decision,” a senior official told the outlet.
“What we accomplished in 12 minutes in Iran, we will also know how to do in Yemen,” the official added. “The meaning here is that Yemen, which over the past 20 months has been a secondary arena attacked by Israel several times, is now becoming a central arena alongside Gaza, and is now an operational priority on the political level, and thus within the Israeli military as well,” Channel 14 reported.
The report followed Defense Minister Israel Katz's statement on Tuesday that “there are two open fronts now: the Gaza Strip and Yemen.”
Israeli officials, including Katz, have been escalating their rhetoric against Yemen in recent weeks, as Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) missile operations continue to frequently target Israel.
A missile launched from Yemen on Wednesday evening fell outside Israel’s border before reaching its target.
A day earlier, the YAF targeted Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv with a missile. The Israeli army said it was intercepted.
Israeli drones targeted the Hodeidah port in western Yemen on Monday, marking its second attack on the country this month.
Early on 7 July, Israel carried out a large-scale attack on several sites in Yemen, including Ras Issa, Hodeidah, and Salif ports, as well as the Hodeidah power plant.
The Israeli army said 20 fighter jets participated in the attack. Over 50 bombs were dropped.
Israel said the 7 July attack on Yemen marked the start of a military operation against the country, dubbed Operation Black Flag.
Yemen’s pro-Palestine operations since the start of the war in Gaza have taken a heavy toll on Israel’s economy.
The southern Eilat port has been forced shut due to huge debts and mass layoffs caused by Yemen’s attacks on Israeli interests in the Red Sea.
According to Israeli reports, Tel Aviv has been lobbying Washington to restart its campaign against Yemen and form a broad coalition to end the threat posed by the YAF.