(MENAFN) In a bold announcement early Sunday, Yemen’s Houthi movement declared it launched several hypersonic ballistic missile strikes targeting Israeli sites near Tel Aviv within the past day. This declaration comes amid intensifying hostilities linked to the Gaza conflict.

Yahya Sarea, the Houthi military spokesperson, told media, “In support of the Palestinian and Iranian peoples, and in response to the crime of starvation and thirst perpetrated by the Zionist enemy against our brothers in the Gaza Strip, the Yemeni Armed Forces' missile force (Houthi missile force) carried out a military operation targeting sensitive Israeli enemy targets in the occupied Tel Aviv area, using many hypersonic ballistic missiles at various times over the past 24 hours.”

Sarea added, "This operation was coordinated with the operations carried out by the Iranian army and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard against the criminal Israeli enemy," signaling a joint campaign against Israel.

The spokesperson pledged that the missile offensives would persist, vowing to continue attacks until “the war and blockade on Gaza end.”

Meanwhile, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed via their social media account on X (formerly Twitter) late Saturday and early Sunday that sirens sounded across Israel due to “projectiles” launched from Yemen. The IDF did not clarify whether these “projectiles” were intercepted. The Houthi attacks coincided with missile waves launched by Iranian forces targeting Tel Aviv.

Videos shared by Israeli citizens captured multiple missile impacts across several cities, underscoring the intensity of the strikes.

The Houthi group, which governs large parts of northern Yemen, has been conducting missile and drone assaults on Israeli targets since November 2023, expressing solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Additionally, residents of Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, reported hearing a significant explosion Saturday night after an Israeli airstrike struck a house in the southern part of the city. According to Israeli media, the strike targeted what was described as a “secret meeting of Houthi military leaders.” There has been no immediate response from the Houthis regarding the Israeli airstrike on the Sanaa residence.

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