As Houthis Claim First Missile Strike on Israel, Shipping Risk Rises in Monthlong War
As the monthlong war in the Mideast grinds on, Iran-backed Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for a missile attack on Israel, marking what they described as their first such strike since the conflict began. The claim was issued Saturday morning, and it lands amid reports of Iranian missile impacts in and around Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The developments are intensifying concern that the fighting could further threaten global shipping, even as key details about operational impacts remain unclear in official statements.
Houthis enter the war with a first claimed Israel strike
The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels said they carried out a missile attack on Israel, a step that inserts the group into the wider conflict in a new, direct way. Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, the Houthis’ military spokesman, issued the claim aired Saturday morning by the rebels’ Ansar Allah media arm.
The statement, as presented, framed the action as the first Houthi missile attack on Israel since the war started. No additional operational details were provided in the statement described in the available account, and no independent confirmation is included in the material available to El-Balad. com.
As casualties are reported in Israel, officials describe injuries near Jerusalem
Israel’s rescue service, Magen David Adom (MDA), said 11 people were wounded in an Iranian missile attack in Eshtaol, near Jerusalem. some were injured by the impact of an explosion, while others were hurt while running to shelters.
MDA also said at least one person was killed in Tel Aviv after an Iranian attack toward Israel on Friday night. The victim, a man in his 60s, was pronounced dead late Friday after suffering severe injuries, MDA said. The available details do not specify the precise location in Tel Aviv where he was found or the exact circumstances of the injuries beyond what MDA described.
Explosions heard in Tehran; Iranian outlet cites multiple targeted locations
Several explosions were heard in various areas across Tehran on Saturday. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency said at least four locations in Tehran were targeted on Saturday. The account available to El-Balad. com does not specify what those locations were or the extent of damage at each site.
Separate from the reports of explosions, an automotive services company in Tehran said it suffered extensive damage following an airstrike on March 1. Journalists visited the company during a government-organized media tour, where the company described the damage as extensive. No additional technical assessment of the site was included in the details available.
Immediate reactions from officials and named institutions
Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, identified as the Houthis’ military spokesman, publicly claimed responsibility for the Houthi missile attack on Israel in the Saturday morning statement broadcast by the Ansar Allah media arm.
In Israel, Magen David Adom provided the official casualty figures cited in this report, detailing both the 11 wounded near Jerusalem and the death in Tel Aviv following the Iranian attack toward Israel on Friday night.
What’s next
The next hours are expected to hinge on whether additional strikes are claimed or confirmed and whether casualty figures change as emergency teams continue responding. As the Houthis publicly position themselves inside the monthlong war, attention is also sharpening on the risk that the conflict could further threaten global shipping, a possibility raised alongside the group’s entry into the fight.
