Adds comments from IDF confirming the attack
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants have claimed responsibility for a drone attack in central Tel Aviv, Israel. The Israeli military has confirmed the attack and said it claimed the life of one citizen.
In a televised statement earlier on 19 July, Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group's forces "carried out a specific military operation" that targeted "the occupied Jafa region, what is now called Israeli Tel Aviv".
A new drone called ‘Yafa' was used, he said, which is capable of bypassing interception systems and is undetectable by radars. "The operation has achieved its goals successfully," Saree said.
Israel's military confirmed a building in Tel Aviv was hit by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), causing one death and eight injuries.
"During the night, a UAV entered from the sea — from the west — which in our initial assessment was launched from Yemen," said Israeli Defence Force (IDF) spokesman brigadier general Daniel Hagari. He said IDF warning systems were not activated and the force is investigating the incident.
"According to the preliminary investigation and field indicators, it is clear that the drone was a ‘Sammad 3' type, which departed from Yemen to Tel Aviv as per our estimates," he said. "Sammad 3 is an Iranian combat vehicle that has been modernised for long range attacks."
Video footage posted on social media appear to show what could have been the impact of a drone a few hundred meters from the US embassy branch office in Tel Aviv.
This marks a significant escalation that might risk a regional spillover of the 10-month conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, especially with Israel highlighting the Iranian origin of the UAV. Israel and Iran avoided a full-blown war in April after a significant escalation led to exchanging direct aerial strikes against each other's territory.
The Houthis began attacking commercial ships in and around the Red Sea six weeks after the Israel-Hamas war broke out last year in what they claim is an act of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
The Houthis have stepped up their attacks on shipping in the past six weeks. It has repeatedly threatened to target Israel and its ports, but previous attempts have largely been intercepted or failed to reach the country. The IDF's Hageri Israel has been dealing with drones from Yemen since the beginning of the Gaza war.
"Dozens of UAVs have been launched from Yemen alone, most of which were intercepted or shot down while en route or before penetrating Israeli territory, most were intercepted by an US task force under Centcom command, and the rest were intercepted by planes or air force defense systems," he said.
Houthi attacks have had a significant impact on crude and refined product shipments through the Suez Canal as many ships travelling between Europe and Asia have opted to avoid the Red Sea and take the longer route around the southern tip of Africa. The flow of oil in both directions through the canal declined by 36pc on the month and by 71pc on the year in June, according to preliminary data from trade analytics firm Kpler.
