Israel intercepts three drones from Yemen

Jerusalem, Sep 7 (IANS) Israel's military announced on Sunday that it intercepted three drones flown from Yemen.

"The Israel Air Force intercepted three UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) that made their way from Yemen," the military said in a statement, adding that they were intercepted before crossing into Israeli territory, Xinhua News Agency reported.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

The Houthi movement, which controls much of northern Yemen, has been launching missiles and drones at Israel since November 2023, saying the attacks are in support of Palestinians in the Gaza war. Israel has responded with strikes on Houthi-controlled areas, including Sanaa and the Red Sea port of Hodeidah.

Earlier in the morning, two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip toward southern Israel, triggering warning sirens in Netivot and nearby communities.

The military said the two projectiles, one intercepted and the other landing in an open area, came from central Gaza.

Earlier this week, Israeli authorities said that Houthi forces in Yemen launched a missile toward Israel for the second time on Tuesday, triggering sirens in parts of central Israel and the occupied West Bank before it was intercepted.

The missile set off air raid sirens in the Jerusalem area and in the southern parts of the West Bank.

Israel's Magen David Adom rescue service said no injuries were reported.

"Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted by the Israel Air Force," the military said in a statement.

There was no immediate comment from the Houthis.

Houthi forces have stepped up missile and drone attacks on Israel after Israeli airstrikes in the Yemeni capital Sanaa killed Ahmad Ghaleb al-Rahwi, the Houthi-run government's prime minister, along with several other ministers.

On August 30, top officials of Yemen's Houthi group vowed to retaliate against Israel as the group confirmed earlier in the day that Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi of the Houthi-backed government, along with several other ministers, was killed in Israeli airstrikes.

The group acknowledged in a statement that the officials were hit in Sanaa during a workshop reviewing government activities over the past year, and that several other ministers were wounded and remain in the hospital. The statement did not say how many ministers were killed.

--IANS

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