TEL AVIV, Dec 21, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - A projectile fired from Yemen struck 
Israel's commercial hub of Tel Aviv early Saturday, wounding 16 people, the 
military and emergency service providers said, the second such attack within 
days.

Israel's military said it had failed to intercept the projectile, which 
struck a district of Tel Aviv municipality, forcing many residents to leave 
their homes.

Yemen's Huthi rebels later claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it 
used a ballistic missile and was directed at "a military target of the 
Israeli enemy".

The Iranian-backed Huthis have repeatedly launched missile attacks against 
Israel in solidarity with Palestinians since the war in Gaza began more than 
a year ago, most of which have been intercepted.

In return, Israel has struck multiple targets in Yemen, including ports and 
energy facilities in areas controlled by the Huthis.

"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.

Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel's emergency medical service, said 16 people 
were lightly injured.

"I was at home and heard a loud explosion. I immediately went to the scene 
and saw significant blast damage to nearby buildings," medic Yosef Kourdi was 
quoted as saying in a statement released by MDA.

"MDA teams provided medical care to 16 individuals who were mildly injured by 
glass shards from shattered windows in nearby buildings due to the impact of 
the strike," the statement said.

Ido Barnea, an IT manager whose apartment was damaged, told AFP a missile 
alert had sounded just before 4:00 am.

"Then there was a big ball of fire in the sky," he said. "I didn't even 
manage to get up and get dressed to go out."

- 'Very lucky' -

An AFP photographer reported that many residents in the vicinity of the 
strike had to leave their homes, carrying only the essentials.

AFP photographs showed debris from the bedroom of a house in the area hit by 
the projectile, as police swiftly cordoned off the neighbourhood.

Noa Mosseri, whose apartment was also damaged, told AFP she too heard the 
missile alert.

"We were very lucky because we didn't have time to get to a safe place. 
Within seconds there was a boom. We managed to get out and so we were not 
hurt," she said.

The Huthi rebels say they are acting in support of Palestinians, and pledged 
in their statement on Saturday to continue operations "until the aggression 
stops and the siege on the Gaza Strip is lifted".

The strike came just two days after the rebels fired a missile at Israel that 
damaged a school.

Israel said that missile had been intercepted and the school was hit by its 
falling debris.

Israel later struck several Huthi sites in Yemen, including in Sanaa -- the 
first such strike in the rebel-held capital.

"The Israeli enemy targeted ports in Hodeida and power stations in Sanaa, and 
the Israeli aggression resulted in the martyrdom of nine civilian martyrs," 
rebel leader Abdul Malik al-Huthi said in a lengthy speech broadcast by the 
rebels' Al-Masira TV.

Soon after retaliating for Thursday's attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin 
Netanyahu warned the rebels of severe repercussions.

"After Hamas, Hezbollah, and the (Bashar al-) Assad regime in Syria, the 
Huthis are almost the last remaining arm of Iran's axis of evil," he said in 
a statement.

"The Huthis are learning and will learn the hard way, that those who strike 
Israel will pay a very heavy price for it."

On December 9, a drone claimed by the Huthis exploded on the top floor of a 
residential building in the central Israel city of Yavne, causing no 
casualties.

And in July, a Huthi drone attack in Tel Aviv killed an Israeli civilian, 
prompting retaliatory strikes on the port of Hodeidah.

The Huthis have also regularly targeted shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf 
of Aden, leading to retaliatory strikes on Huthi targets by US and sometimes 
British forces.