Israel’s navy launched strikes against infrastructure at the Hodeidah port city in Yemen’s west coast on the Red Sea Tuesday morning, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirms in a statement.
The IDF said the strikes come in response to recent Houthi missile and drone attacks on Israel.
The navy missile ships conducted the direct strikes from sea.
The attack was carried out after many advance warnings by the IDF in order to minimize possible harm to the civilian population in the area, the IDF said.
Early Tuesday, Israel issued warnings to Yemenis to evacuate the area. “The IDF has repeatedly warned those staying at the port to stay away and evacuate the area.”
It’s unclear how the Houthis will respond now that an attack has come from the sea, rather than the air, from the Israelis.
Shipping Telegraph cannot independently verify the IDF statement.
The Houthis have been launching persistent missile and drone attacks against commercial and military ships in the region in what the group’s leadership has described as an effort to end Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
“For the past year and a half, the Houthi terrorist regime has been operating with aggression, guidance, and Iranian funding in order to harm the state of Israel and its allies, undermine the regional order, and disrupt global freedom of navigation,” the IDF says.
Earlier on Tuesday, however, the US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on X that US Navy ships passed through the Red Sea and Bab al Mandeb “multiple times in recent days” without facing Houthi attacks.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, U.S. naval vessels have exercised freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and Bab al Mandeb multiple times in recent days. These transits occurred without challenge and demonstrate the success of both operation Rough Rider and the President’s peace through strength agenda.”
The Hudaydah Port (Hodeidah port) is a key Yemeni port on the Red Sea coast and the second largest port in the country, located in Al Hudaydah, the fourth largest city in Yemen.
The port is situated in the middle of Yemen’s west coast on the Red Sea.
