Yemen’s Houthis vow to launch retaliatory attacks after Israel hits oil storages

Sanaa: Yemen’s Houthi group vowed to launch retaliatory attacks against Israel after the latter destroyed oil storage facilities in the Houthi-held Red Sea port city of Hodeidah.

“The Israeli enemy launched a brutal aggression on Hodeidah, targeting the power station, the port, and the fuel storages, all of which are civilian targets,” Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a televised statement.

“We will not hesitate to hit vital targets in Israel,” he said, reiterating that Tel Aviv will not remain a safe area, Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier in the day, Israel said its fighter jets hit and destroyed Houthi targets in Hodeidah port city.

Residents and eyewitnesses told Xinhua that the fire in the oil storage facilities lasted hours.

The Israeli air strikes came a day after the Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone attack on a building in Tel Aviv that killed a person and injured 10 others.

The Houthis have been targeting Israeli-linked ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since November last year to show solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Many shipping companies have since changed their routes to go around the southern tip of Africa to avoid drone and missile attacks.