US strikes Houthi targets in Yemen

SANAA/GAZA — The United States said on Saturday it conducted precision airstrikes in Yemen's capital Sanaa, hours after a Houthi missile wounded people in Israel's commercial hub Tel Aviv.

The missile, which wounded 16 people, was the second such attack in two days.

Among the targets of US forces was a missile storage center and a "command-and-control facility", the US Central Command said in a statement.

US forces also shot down multiple Houthi drones and an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea, it said, shortly after the Houthis'al-Masirah TV channel reported that an "aggression" had targeted the Attan district of Sanaa, blaming Western forces.

In another development, the US military said it mistakenly shot down one of its own fighter aircraft over the Red Sea early on Sunday, forcing both pilots to eject. Both were rescued, one with minor injuries, after the "apparent case of friendly fire", which is being investigated, the Central Command said.

US and British forces have repeatedly struck targets in Yemen this year in response to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, which is vital to global trade.

Israel has also previously struck back, including against ports and energy facilities, after Houthi attacks against its territory.

The Houthis had claimed responsibility for Saturday's strike on Israel, saying they directed a ballistic missile at "a military target of the Israeli enemy".

The Israeli military said it failed to intercept the missile, forcing many residents to leave their homes in the early hours.

"One projectile launched from Yemen was identified and unsuccessful interception attempts were made", after alert sirens sounded, the Israeli military said on its Telegram channel.

In a later statement, it said Israeli civilians had been "deliberately targeted".

The Houthi group in Yemen has been attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea for more than a year to try to enforce a naval blockade on Israel, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Israel's yearlong military assault in Gaza.

No letup in Gaza

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli strikes overnight and early on Sunday killed at least 28 Palestinians, including at one family's home and at a school building the military said was used by Hamas.

Civil agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said in a statement that at least 13 people were killed in an airstrike on a house in central Gaza's Deir el-Balah belonging to the Abu Samra family.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which has confirmed a separate strike further north on a school in Gaza City.

Bassal said eight people, including four children, were killed in the attack on the school, which had been repurposed as a shelter for Palestinians displaced by the conflict.

The Israeli military said it had carried out a "precise strike" overnight targeting Hamas militants operating there.

A military statement said a Hamas "command and control center ... was embedded inside" the school compound in the city's east, adding that it was used "to plan and execute terrorist attacks" against Israeli forces.

Bassal said an overnight strike killed three people in Rafah, in the south, and a drone strike early on Sunday hit a car in Gaza City, killing four people.

Agencies via Xinhua