Operation White City
The “Operation White City” strike was carried out via 14 aircraft, which targeted Yemen's coastal area and the capital of Sana'a. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed Israel's strike, asserting, "They learn and will learn the hard way that whoever harms Israel pays for it a heavy price." The US was notified of Israel's intent to carry out the attacks, a source told The Jerusalem Post.
The Israeli military noted that jets flew 2,000 kilometers and used over 60 bombs to strike Houthi targets, which included oil and fuel tanks, eight tugboats, and two power plants. "The Houthi terror regime has carried out repeated attacks against the State of Israel, launching unmanned aerial vehicles and surface-to-surface missiles toward Israeli territory, most of which were successfully intercepted," the military's statement read. "The Houthi terror regime has been operating over the past year under Iranian direction and funding, in collaboration with Iraqi militias, to harm Israel, destabilize regional order, and disrupt global maritime freedom," the IDF added.
The Houthis said they had carried out an operation targeting two “sensitive military targets” in Israel’s Yaffa area, south of Tel Aviv, with two ballistic missiles. “The operation has successfully achieved its objectives,” read a statement published on Yemen’s state news agency Saba. It said the attacks took place “simultaneously” with Israeli air raids on civilian infrastructure in Sanaa and Hodeidah. “The Israeli aggression will not deter Yemen and the Yemenis from performing their religious and moral duty in responding to its massacres in the Gaza Strip,” it said.
Al Masirah TV, the main news outlet run by Yemen’s Houthi movement controlling much of the country, said seven people were killed in an Israeli attack on the port of as-Salif and the rest in two strikes on the Ras Isa oil facility; both are located in the western province of Hodeidah. “The enemy launched four aggressive raids targeting the port … and two raids targeting” an oil facility, Al Masirah reported. The series of “aggressive raids” also targeted two central power stations south and north of the capital, Sanaa, it added.
In the aftermath of Israel’s strategic strike on Houthi targets in Yemen on 19 December 2024, reactions across the Arab world have revealed deep regional divisions. While Saudi commentators appeared to welcome the action, Hamas rushed to express solidarity with the Houthis, who vowed continued attacks on Israeli targets.
Rassan Charbel, editor at a leading Saudi newspaper, penned a pointed commentary : “[Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, at his most imperious, gazes across the region from Mount Hermon before dispatching his aircraft to strike Houthi positions in Yemen. What must Tehran be thinking as it witnesses Israeli strikes on Sanaa this morning? Do these fresh Israeli strikes on Yemen represent one of the final communications to Iran?”
After two months of containment, Israel attacked the Houthis in Yemen again, an hour after the missile that exploded in Ramat Gan was launched, but the attacks did not stop - and at noon a drone launched towards Tel Aviv was intercepted at sea. The Houthi leader, who suffered with him under heavy Saudi bombings in the previous decade and was not bothered at all, now declared: "We do not care about their aggression." For the first time, a power plant was attacked in Sanaa, thousands of homes were blacked out: "The regime has put us in a whirlwind," a resident of the city told Ynet.
When the fighter jets were already in the air to attack 2,000 km from Israel and put an end to weeks of curbing the repeated attacks by the Houthis, the reminder came again that the war had not disappeared at all, and millions of Israelis in the center of the country woke up in the middle of the night to alarms following the launch of a missile from Yemen - whose launch actually failed and its warhead exploded over a school in Ramat Afal. An hour later, the Air Force had already bombed a series of strategic Houthi targets - for the first time also in their stronghold in the capital Sana'a - but evidence of the difficulty of hitting them hard from such a long distance, one that could put an end to their attacks, came in the afternoon - when a drone that was also launched from Yemen was intercepted off the coast of Tel Aviv.
In weeks since the ceasefire with Hezbollah, which was crushed in Lebanon, and the subsequent collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, the Houthis effectively became one of the few arms of Iran that have not yet been significantly harmed – and to some extent have even increased their attacks against Israel. The 19 December 2024 attack was the third in number by the IDF against them, two and a half months after the previous attack – and as then, Israel claimed that they suffered significant strategic damage, but in reality the launches had not stopped. The IDF said that the aim of the new attacks was to paralyze the ports controlled by the Houthi, with the bombing of eight tugboats. On the other hand, officials at the main port in Hodeidah claimed that they had additional ships capable of towing vessels.
Israel's military said 21 December 2024 it had failed to intercept a "projectile" launched from Yemen that landed in Tel Aviv, with the national medical service saying 16 people were lightly wounded. "Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in central Israel, one projectile launched from Yemen was identified and unsuccessful interception attempts were made," the Israeli military said on its Telegram channel.
In a statement, the Houthis said they had "targeted a military target of the Israeli enemy in the occupied area of" Tel Aviv using a ballistic missile. The Iran-backed Yemeni group has repeatedly launched missile attacks against Israel since the war in Gaza began more than a year ago, most of which have been intercepted.
In return, Israel struck multiple targets in Yemen – including ports and energy facilities in areas controlled by the Houthis.
The US military said 21 December 2024 it had conducted air strikes against targets linked to the Houthi rebels in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, including a missile storage facility and a “command-and-control” site.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree sid 22 December 2024 the group’s forces foiled an attack last night by US and UK forces. He said the Houthis launched a counter-operation that involved eight cruise missiles and 17 drones. He said during the operation, an F-18 was shot down, and other aircraft were forced to withdraw from Yemeni airspace to defend a US aircraft carrier, the USS Harry Truman. He also claimed that the aircraft carrier was forced to retreat to the northern Red Sea after coming under attack.
The US military said two of its navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea in “an apparent case of friendly fire”. Both pilots were recovered alive, though “initial assessments indicate that one of the crew members sustained minor injuries,” the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) stated.
Israeli military forces faced significant challenges in countering Houthi missile and drone attacks since the beginning of the war on Gaza in October 2023, according to Israeli newspaper Maariv 21 December 2024. Maariv’s report said that the Houthis have launched over 200 ballistic missiles and 170 drones at Israeli targets, severely testing Israel's defence capabilities. It added that Israel’s defence mechanisms, particularly the Iron Dome and other air defence systems, have struggled to cope with the evolving threat posed by the Houthis.
The report criticised Israel’s military response and intelligence preparation, claiming that the country was unprepared for the threat posed by the Houthis. “Israel was not ready - either politically or in terms of intelligence - to deal with the threat coming from Yemen,” the report said. “Iran has invested more in the Houthis in recent weeks following the collapse of the Shia axis, making the Houthi movement a leader of this axis,” the report noted.
The failures of Israel’s air defence systems were underscored, with Maariv reporting that the "Arrow" missile defence system, Israel's main line of defence against ballistic missiles, had failed four times in a row to intercept missiles, including three launched from Yemen and one from Lebanon.
A pair of “Iron Dome” or “David’s Sling” Interceptors seen being launched and failing to intercept the Ballistic Missile fired by the Houthis in Yemen at Central Israel. A crater several meters deep was formed at the impact site, a playground between residential buildings in Jaffa, south of Tel Aviv. Many residents reported they didn't have time to reach a bomb shelter. The IDF said that more than one intercepting system failed to thwart the missile, and footage on social media apparently shows at least two interceptors were fired, but failed to hit it. IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari announced that the Air Force is still conducting an "in-depth investigation" into the failure to intercept the missile. The army said that some lessons have already been learned and implemented, both in the areas of interception and warning systems.
Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said 22 December 2024 that Mossad chief David Barnea recommended launching an attack on Iran, not on the Houthis in Yemen, in response to the firing of missiles at Israel. In closed discussions, PM Netanyahu expressed his disagreement with the Mossad head, emphasizing the need for Israel to take direct action against the Houthis this week. He believes the Iranian threat should be addressed separately.
According to Haaretz, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz stated 24 December 2024 that Israel would deliver a “hard blow” to the Houthis. He emphasized plans to target Houthi strategic infrastructure and leadership, declaring, “We will do the same in Hodeidah and Sana’a as we did in Tehran, Gaza, and Lebanon against Heniyyeh, Sinwar, and Nasrallah.”
“We defeated Hamas, we defeated Hezbollah, we blinded Iran’s defense systems, and we disrupted their missile production capabilities,” Katz continued, adding that Israel would deal a severe blow to the Houthis. “Anyone who raises their hand against Israel will have their hand cut off. The long arm of the Israeli army will strike them, and they will face unprecedented retribution,” he threatened.
Israel Defense Forces announced 26 December 2024 "Following the approval of operational plans by the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of Defense and the Prime Minister, IAF fighter jets conducted intelligence-based strikes on military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime on the western coast and inland Yemen a short while ago. The Houthi terrorist regime has repeatedly attacked the State of Israel and its citizens, including in UAV and surface-to-surface missile attacks on Israeli territory.
"The targets that were struck by the IDF include military infrastructure used by the Houthi terrorist regime for its military activities in both the Sana’a International Airport and the Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power stations. In addition, the IDF struck military infrastructure in the Al-Hudaydah, Salif and Ras Kanatib ports on the western coast. These military targets were used by the Houthi terrorist regime to smuggle Iranian weapons into the region and for the entry of senior Iranian officials. This is a further example of the Houthis' exploitation of civilian infrastructure for military purposes.
"The Houthi terrorist regime is a central part of the Iranian axis of terror, and their attacks on international shipping vessels and routes continue to destabilize the region and the wider world. The Houthi terrorist regime operates as an autonomous terrorist group while relying on Iranian cooperation and funding to carry out its attacks. The IDF will not hesitate to operate at any distance against any threat to the State of Israel and its citizens."
On 27 December 2024 Prime Minister of Israel Netanyahu visited the Air Force command and control center with Defense Minister Katz, IDF Chief-of-Staff Lt.-Gen. Halevi and Air Force Commander Maj.-Gen. Bar, to monitor the attack on Houthi terrorist infrastructure in Yemen and along the western coastal strip. Netanyahu said : "This evening we are lighting the second candle of Chanukah. We are in the war of redemption, the Maccabees of our time. A short while ago, the Air Force attacked targets of the Houthi terrorist organization in Yemen, both along the coast and in Sana'a. We are determined to cut off this terrorist arm of Iran's axis of evil. We will persist until we get the job done."
Gideon Sa'ar, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel stated : " Israel carried out strikes against targets of the Houthi terrorist organization in Yemen. This action follows the Houthis’ relentless attacks on Israel since October 7th, including missile and drone assaults in the past week. The Houthis are a proxy of the Iranian regime and a central part of their axis. Their crippling attacks on international shipping routes upend global stability. We will not tolerate unprovoked aggression from a terrorist army operating 2,000 kilometers away. Israel will take all military and diplomatic measures it deems necessary to protect its security."
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon, in addressing the UN Security Council 31 December 2024, said that Israel would not tolerate further Houthi attacks. “To the Houthis, perhaps you have not been paying attention to what has happened to the Middle East over the past year,” he said. “Well, allow me to remind you what has happened to Hamas, to Hezbollah, to Assad, to all those who have attempted to destroy us. Let this be your final warning. This is not a threat. It is a promise. You will share the same miserable fate,” Danon said.
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