Israel bombs Yemen, killing at least 35 people

BarcelonaIsrael didn't wait 24 hours after bombing the Qatari capital to attack the Yemeni capital. Its aircraft launched an attack on the Yemeni Defense Ministry in Sana'a on Wednesday and other residential areas in the city, in retaliation for the Houthi drone attack on Ramon International Airport in southern Israel. At least 35 people were killed and 131 others were injured in the wave of attacks in Sana'a and the Al Jawf region, according to data from the Yemeni Ministry of Health.

"Our air defenses are currently confronting the Israeli air force, which is attacking our country," admitted the Yemeni military spokesman, Yahya Saree, in a brief statement posted on his X account. ~BK_SLT_L~ which claims to have attacked military camps, the headquarters of the group's propaganda division and a fuel depot, both in Sana'a and in the Al Jawf area, in the north of the capital. According to the Israeli army statement, the Houthi military propaganda division "is responsible for disseminating incitement and propaganda messages to the media, including speeches by leader Abdul-Malik [al-Houthi] and statements by spokesman Yahya Saree." This is the sixth foreign country to bomb Israel this month alone.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed that the attack is in response to the Houthi drones that hit Israel's Ramon International Airport a few days ago. "This [attack] did not weaken us: today we attacked them again from the air, at their terrorist facilities, at terrorist bases with many terrorists, and at other facilities as well," the leader wrote in a post on X. "We will continue to attack. Whoever hits us, whoever attacks us, we will shoot them down," he threatened.

Yemeni authorities denounce that Israel has directed the projectiles "exclusively against civilians" and that among the affected facilities are the headquarters of two newspapers: September 26th and In Yemen, both affiliated with the Houthis. Among the dead and wounded were "journalists and other civilians," the group's spokesman said.

Yemen was not the only target of Israeli missiles on Wednesday. The Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), which heads to Gaza to try to break the Israeli blockade humanitarian aid, reported last night a second drone attack, this time against one of the ships docked in the Tunisian port of Sidi Bou Said, in the northeast of the country. The impact of the projectile caused a fire on the deck of the vessel, namedSoul and with the British flag. The fire was quickly extinguished and caused no injuries or structural damage to the ship.

"An attempt to derail our mission"

The events occurred hours before the flotilla is scheduled to leave Tunisia for Gaza in the coming hours and after the organization had already denounced this Tuesday a fire caused by the impact of a drone on one of the main vessels of the Flotilla, the so-called Family Boat, carrying members of the mission's steering committee. "These repeated attacks come amid the escalating Israeli aggression against Palestinians in Gaza and constitute an orchestrated attempt to distract and derail our mission," the organization denounced in a statement.

Following Tuesday's allegation, the Tunisian National Guard denied that it was a drone attack and noted that the flames had originated "in one of the ship's life jackets, caused by a lighter or cigarette butt." However, images of the events show a device falling from the sky onto the ship before the fire, as evidenced by the video of Wednesday's attack. Members of the attacked crew also recovered a "charred electronic device" on the deck. The GSF has shared the photographs on social media.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Saif Abukeshek, a member of the flotilla's steering committee, framed the attacks as part of Israel's psychological warfare to "instill fear" and "stop solidarity" with the Palestinians, but made it clear that they will not back down and called for "all eyes to be on Gaza." "This [the attacks on the flotilla] is nothing compared to what they are doing to the Palestinians in Gaza every day," Thiago Ávila, also a member of the steering committee, added in a video message.

The two affected boats belong to the flotilla that left the port of Barcelona and are anchored in a port in Tunisia, awaiting the resumption of the voyage to Gaza this Wednesday with more Tunisian vessels. A total of some 300 volunteers from up to 44 countries will join the mission, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and former Barcelona mayor Ada Colau.

"The Global Sumud Flotilla remains undaunted. Our peaceful journey to break Israel's illegal siege on Gaza and maintain solidarity with its people moves forward with determination and resolve," the organization stated, making it clear that only weather or technical problems could change the departure plans for the Strip in the coming months.

Israel says it will kill Hamas leaders "next time"

All this, while Israel has ordered the evacuation of all of Gaza City and hours after launching an attack on Qatar against the delegation of Hamas qwho was negotiating a possible ceasefire. Among the six victims are two high-ranking officials within the organization: Humam al-Hayya, the son of Khalil al-Hayya, the exiled Hamas leader in Gaza and chief negotiator, and the head of his office, Jihad Labad. In addition, there are three Hamas bodyguards and a member of the Qatari security forces.

The almost unanimous condemnation from the international community, which interpreted the attack as a violation of the country's sovereignty and international law, has not stifled the Israeli authorities. The country's ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, stated in an interview on the American network Fox News that if it is ultimately confirmed that Israel's attack on Doha did not kill Hamas leaders, "we will succeed next time." With the same determination, he shook off the criticism: "We are now the subject of some criticism. They will overcome it. Israel is changing for the better." Israeli army chief Eyal Zamir reiterated this message, stating that his goal is to "collapse the Hamas government" and to achieve this, he is adopting a "multi-front war" strategy.

Coinciding with these proclamations, the Israeli army has continued its military offensive to take full control of the capital of the Gaza Strip, which has forced more than a million Palestinians to flee their homes. This Wednesday, it bombed another skyscraper in the capital of the Strip—the seventh in recent weeks—and has already killed at least 53 people since early morning, 12 of whom have died at the humanitarian aid distribution points organized by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The victims add to the enormous toll of 64,656 dead and 163,000 wounded in the Palestinian enclave since October 2023.

Israel's unpunished actions also extend to the West Bank. This morning, Israeli forces arrested the mayor of Al Qubeiba, a town in the Jerusalem governorate, according to the Wafa news agency, during a raid on his home. While the Gaza massacre dominates the media, more than 35,000 Palestinians in the West Bank have been expelled from the Jenin, Tulkarem, and Fara camps.