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Israeli missile boats were deployed in the Red Sea on Wednesday as reinforcements, the IDF said in a statement, following long-range missile and drone attacks claimed by Yemen’s Houthis.
Images disseminated by the military appeared to show Saar-class Corvettes patrolling near Eilat Port in the Red Sea, which Israel sees as a new front as its war in Gaza draws retaliation from Iran-aligned pro-Hamas forces elsewhere in the region.
An aerial threat was intercepted over the Red Sea near Eilat on Tuesday night, according to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit. No alert was activated in the city.
No threat was posed to civilians and the threat did not enter Israeli territory, according to the IDF.
תושבים באילת דיווחו על פיצוץ ושובל יירוט בשמי העיר@Itsik_zuarets @hadasgrinberg pic.twitter.com/Kdmta6KaOU
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) October 31, 2023
Shortly after the interception was reported, Hezam Alasad, a member of the political bureau of the Iran-backed Houthi militia, posted the word “Eilat” in Arabic and Hebrew on X (formerly Twitter).
The incident comes less than 24 hours after drones and missiles fired by the Houthi militia towards Eilat were intercepted by the IDF.
On Tuesday afternoon, the spokesman for the Houthi’s military branch, Yahya Saree, confirmed that the Houthis had fired “a large batch of ballistic and winged missiles and a large number of drones at various targets of the Israeli enemy” on Tuesday morning.
Saree added that the drone and missile fire on Tuesday morning was the third such attack conducted by the Houthis and warned they would “continue to carry out more qualitative strikes with missiles and drones until the Israeli aggression stops.”
When asked if the IDF intended to respond to the attacks by the Houthis earlier on Tuesday, IDF Spokesperson R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari stated “the wise thing isn’t speaking to media, the wise thing is speaking with actions and protecting the security interests of Israel and to do so in the necessary time and place.”
“There are many elements in the region working on behalf of Iran, such as the Houthis, who are trying to challenge us and divert us from the war in Gaza,” Hagari said. “We stay focused. We are focused on the war in Gaza.”
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