Houthis Claim Hypersonic Missile Strike On Israel, Prompting IDF Airstrikes On Yemen

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree claimed on X that Iran-backed Yemeni Armed Forces launched two hypersonic ballistic missiles targeting military sites in the Jaffa region near Tel Aviv. Israel reported intercepting the missile strike, which was followed hours later by Israeli fighter jets pounding key infrastructure in Yemen. 

"Statement of the Yemeni Armed Forces regarding the implementation of a qualitative military operation targeting two qualitative and sensitive military targets of the Israeli enemy in the occupied Jaffa region with two hypersonic ballistic missiles of the Palestine 2 type," Saree wrote on X (translated via Google). 

Israel's military announced the interception of a missile launched from Yemen: "Rocket and missile sirens were sounded following the possibility of falling debris from the interception," adding that a missile had been intercepted before entering Israeli airspace. 

"I urge the leaders of the Houthi organization to see, to understand and to remember: whoever raises a hand against the state of Israel, his hand will be cut off," Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said, referring to the retaliatory strikes. 

AP News reported that Israeli retaliatory airstrikes were in "two waves of strikes in a preplanned operation that began early Thursday and involved 14 fighter jets."

"The military said the first wave of strikes targeted Houthi infrastructure at the ports of Hodeida, Salif and the Ras Isa oil terminal on the Red Sea," AP noted, adding, "Then, in a second wave of strikes, the military said its fighter jets targeted Houthi energy infrastructure in Sanaa."

US forces were active in the skies of Yemen to start the week, launching a series of strikes on the Houthi rebels, according to US Central Command. 

Thursday's exchange of strikes between the Iranian-backed Houthis and Israel implies that Tehran's self-described "Axis of Resistance" remains active in the region, with the potential to escalate further. The rebels maintain a firm hold on the critical maritime chokepoint in the southern Red Sea.

In the short term, the threats to the homeland are rising, as described by Dr. Mahmut Cengiz, an Associate Professor and Research Faculty with Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center and the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University: 

"Radicalized Hamas members may increasingly look to Al-Qaeda as a more viable destination for their operations, given Al-Qaeda's growing capabilities and its strategic ties to Iran. This shift could significantly strengthen Al-Qaeda's position in the region, making it an even more formidable threat to Western and Israeli interests in the future." 

Given the turmoil in the Middle East and the Biden-Harris administration's disastrous handling of the region, the risk of a domestic attack is undoubtedly rising. Open borders have allowed an invasion of illegal aliens, some of whom may be pre-trained terrorists. Voters gave Trump a clear mandate: restore national security.