Fires west of Jerusalem, Houthi rebels claim attack from Yemen

Israeli firefighters are trying Monday morning to put out fires in the Bet Shemesh sector west of Jerusalem, caused according to the army by the “interception” of a missile fired from Yemen.

In this area, about twenty kilometers southwest of Jerusalem, firefighters “are now working to put out the fires,” said a firefighter press release.

“In parallel with the extinguishing operations, the firefighters are carrying out additional reconnaissance in the area, in order to exclude further fires and damage caused by fragments of interceptors or missiles,” according to the press release from the firefighters of the region of Jerusalem.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels, supported by Iran, claimed responsibility for the attack on Israel on Monday. “The Yemeni armed forces carried out an operation targeting the Nahal Sorek military base, southeast of Jaffa. The shot was precise and started a fire near the targeted site,” said their military spokesperson, Yahya Saree.

Interception du projectile

Questioned by AFP, an Israeli army spokesperson confirmed that the fires had been caused by “debris” resulting from the “interception” of a missile coming from Yemen.

Warning sirens sounded in the Bet Shemesh area shortly before 6:00 a.m. (4:00 GMT). According to a military statement, the Israeli Air Force “intercepted a projectile approaching Israel from Yemen.” “The projectile did not enter Israeli territory,” adds the army.

In Yemen, the Houthi rebels, who control large swathes of the country, are part, along with other groups such as the terrorist movements of Hamas in Palestine and Hezbollah in Lebanon, of what the Islamic Republic of Iran describes as an “axis”. of resistance” against Israel.

Since the start of the war sparked by the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, the Houthis have carried out several attacks against Israel as well as ships off the coast of Yemen, claiming to act in solidarity with the Palestinians.

Four drones heading towards Israel

Furthermore, the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq”, a coalition of pro-Iranian armed groups, claimed four successive drone attacks, carried out early Monday against “essential targets” in the north and south of Israel.

The Israeli army, for its part, indicated that it had “managed to intercept four drones which were approaching Israel from the east” during the night from Sunday to Monday. “Two of them were intercepted before entering Israeli territory,” said a military statement.