Israel Pounds Hudaydah Port in Yemen | WATCH

The Israeli Air Force conducted at least 12 airstrikes on the Houthi-controlled port of Hudaydah in western Yemen, hitting three docks used as a hub for transferring Iranian-supplied weapons destined for drone and missile attacks against Israel, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed Tuesday afternoon.

The operation, which followed an IDF evacuation warning issued earlier in the day, marks the 19th Israeli military action against Houthi targets in Yemen since July 2024. Local Yemeni media and Houthi-affiliated reports indicated heavy bombardment on the port's infrastructure, with no immediate casualty figures released. The strikes aim to disable the port's operations for several weeks and enforce a naval blockade, according to IDF statements.

Prior to the attack, the IDF's Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, posted an urgent evacuation notice on social media, urging civilians, port workers, and ships docked at Hudaydah to leave immediately due to "military activities carried out by the Houthi terrorist regime" there. The warning highlighted the port's role in Houthi operations and stressed that anyone remaining in the area risked their lives.

In a statement, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said: "The IDF continues to strike military infrastructures of the Houthi terrorist regime in Yemen. A short while ago, the IDF struck military infrastructures of the Houthi terrorist regime at the Hudaydah port in Yemen." The military emphasized that Hudaydah serves as a key entry point for Iranian weapons, which the Houthis, Iran-backed rebels controlling much of northwestern Yemen, use to launch unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and surface-to-surface missiles at Israeli territory and international shipping in the Red Sea.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree claimed in a televised statement that the group's air defenses "caused significant confusion among the enemy aircraft, forcing some of their combat formations to withdraw from our airspace before carrying out their attack," and that "their penetration into the depths was successfully thwarted, thanks to God." Houthi media, including Al-Masirah TV, reported the strikes but urged residents not to document or share footage, warning it would aid Israel. The Houthi Interior Ministry echoed this call, prohibiting photography of the attacks.

This latest escalation follows repeated Houthi assaults on Israel, including missile and drone launches in solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Gaza war. The Houthis, who seized Yemen's capital Sanaa in 2014 and sparked a civil war, have targeted over 100 merchant vessels since November 2023, sinking two and killing four sailors, though they paused attacks during a January 2025 Israel-Hamas ceasefire before resuming. Hudaydah, Yemen's second-largest Red Sea port after Aden, handles about 80% of the country's food imports and humanitarian aid, raising concerns about civilian impacts despite the evacuation order.

The IDF vowed to continue operations, stating: "The IDF will continue to operate forcefully in the face of the repeated attacks of the Houthi terrorist regime against the State of Israel, and is determined to continue to strike forcefully at any threat to the citizens of the State of Israel, at whatever distance is required."

The strikes coincide with broader regional tensions, including Israel's ground offensive in Gaza City launched Tuesday.