01 November 2023

Houthis claim failed attacks on Israel

by Jeremy Binnie & Yaakov Lappin

Ansar Allah's video purportedly showing the weapons launched at Israel showed what appeared to be a Zulfiqar ballistic missile. (Ansar Allah)

The Iranian-backed Yemeni group Ansar Allah (Houthis) confirmed on 31 October that it has launched ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at Israel, warning that it would continue to do so for as long as the military operation against Hamas continues.

The spokesman for the group's armed wing said it had launched a large number of ballistic and “winged” missiles earlier that day at various Israeli targets. “This is the third operation in support of our oppressed brothers in Palestine and the armed forces will continue to carry out more qualitive missile and drone attacks until Israel ceases its aggression,” he said, seemingly referring to two earlier attacks that the group did not directly claim at the time.

The group accompanied the statement with a propaganda image of one of the three Toufan ballistic missiles that it unveiled in the parade it held in Sanaa on 21 September. These appeared to be the improved Ghadr variant of Iran's Shahab-3 series, a type capable of reaching Israel from Yemen.

On 1 November the group released a video that purportedly showed the missiles and UAVs being launched at Israel. The footage appeared to show two ballistic missile launches, but this could have been the same missile filmed from slightly different angles.

The Iranian-backed Yemeni group Ansar Allah (Houthis) confirmed on 31 October that it has launched b...

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