{"id":119958,"date":"2025-03-21T17:00:53","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T15:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=119958"},"modified":"2025-03-21T10:16:10","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T08:16:10","slug":"21-00-105","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=119958","title":{"rendered":"Israel Faces Dual Attacks as Houthis and Hamas Target Major Cities, IDF Expands Ground Operations in Gaza"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>Israel Faces Dual Attacks as Houthis and Hamas Target Major Cities, IDF Expands Ground Operations in Gaza<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/h5>\n

Debbie Weiss<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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A Houthi fighter mans a machine gun mounted on a truck during a parade for people who attended Houthi military training as part of a mobilization campaign, in Sanaa, Yemen, Dec. 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS\/Khaled Abdullah<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Millions of Israelis scrambled for shelter overnight as\u00a0Iran-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen<\/a>\u00a0launched a ballistic missile at Israel, setting off air-raid sirens across the center of the country and the Jerusalem area, and was followed hours later by a Hamas rocket barrage targeting Tel Aviv on Thursday afternoon.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported intercepting the missile from Yemen before it entered Israeli airspace, while the Iron Dome intercepted a further three missiles from Hamas later on, triggering sirens throughout the metropolitan area. While there were no reported casualties, shrapnel from intercepted rockets was found in Rishon Lezion. The rocket fire came as the IDF expanded its ground operations in Gaza, warning Palestinian civilians to avoid the Netzarim Corridor, a strategic seven-kilometer road that bisects the enclave.<\/span><\/p>\n

The United States has urged Israel not to respond directly to the Houthi missile strike, according to a Hebrew-language Ynet report citing an Israeli official. US forces already\u00a0carried out airstrikes against the Houthis<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 who have targeted American and Israeli ships in the Red Sea and disrupted global shipping through the critical trade route \u2014\u00a0in recent days and told Israel to \u201callow them to handle the situation,\u201d the report said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eitan Shamir, a security expert, noted that, regardless, it would not be wise \u2014 and neither within its capabilities \u2014 for Israel to secure the Red Sea without help.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAchieving this objective cannot be accomplished by Israel alone and will require the involvement of the international community,\u201d he told\u00a0The Algemeiner<\/em>. \u201cThe Israeli Navy lacks the capabilities to secure Israeli shipping in the southern Red Sea independently. Politically, it is also undesirable for Israel to take on the responsibility of addressing a problem that is internationally recognized, particularly since Israel is often accused of causing it due to its attacks on Gaza.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Nevertheless, Shamir added, Israel\u2019s \u201cgoal for ending the conflict is to ensure complete freedom of navigation to and from its waters.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Shamir, who is the director of Bar-Ilan University\u2019s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, also underscored recent US State Department decisions against the Houthis, including\u00a0reinstating its foreign terrorist designation<\/a>\u00a0and its $15 million reward for information on its financing. Still, he said, \u201cthe impact of these actions on the Houthis\u2019 blockade in the southern part of the Red Sea is currently unclear.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Shamir highlighted reports suggesting that China was providing financial protection to the Houthis to ensure its own ships remain unharmed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The expansion of\u00a0Iranian activities into the Mediterranean Sea<\/a>\u00a0has raised further concerns. Shamir highlighted the likelihood that Israel\u2019s navy will need to increase its operational presence in both the Red Sea and Mediterranean, potentially requiring additional vessels to secure shipping lanes. Cooperation with the US Fifth Fleet and allied naval forces will remain crucial to maintaining stability in these waterways, he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Shamir warned against unilateral action, saying, \u201cIt is not in Israel\u2019s best interest to act unilaterally to deter the Houthis.\u201d Instead, he urged Israel to let the US take the lead, including pressuring Iran, which \u201cundoubtedly has influence over the Houthis, to stop the attacks on Israel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the IDF targeted key Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist operatives. Among those eliminated was Rashid Jahjouh, head of Hamas\u2019s General Security Apparatus, who was responsible for maintaining internal security and intelligence operations, identifying and targeting \u201ccollaborators\u201d and spreading propaganda. Also killed was Ayman Etsilah, a senior Hamas security official in Khan Yunis, and Ismail Abd al-Aal, a high-ranking figure in Islamic Jihad\u2019s weapons smuggling network.<\/span><\/p>\n

The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed that these operations were part of broader efforts to\u00a0dismantle the leadership and infrastructure<\/a>\u00a0of terrorist groups in the enclave.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hamas and Islamic Jihad, like the Houthis, are both backed by Iran, which provides the Palestinian terrorist groups with weapons and funding.<\/span><\/p>\n

Several other Hamas leaders have been killed since Israel resumed strikes earlier this week, including Yasser Muhammad Harb Musa, who managed Hamas\u2019s security portfolio, and Ayssam al-Dalis, the head of Hamas\u2019s Gaza government. Mahmoud Marzouk Ahmed Abu Watfa, responsible for Hamas\u2019s internal security, and Ahmed Abdulla Al-hata, the group\u2019s Minister of Justice, were also among those targeted.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The current escalation follows the collapse of a\u00a0temporary ceasefire and hostage-release deal<\/a>\u00a0that lasted 42 days, during which the terror group released 30 living hostages and the remains of eight slain captives, while Israel freed nearly 2,000 Palestinian security prisoners.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Israel Faces Dual Attacks as Houthis and Hamas Target Major Cities, IDF Expands Ground Operations in Gaza Debbie Weiss A Houthi fighter mans a machine gun mounted on a truck during a parade for people who attended Houthi military training as part of a mobilization campaign, in Sanaa, Yemen, Dec. 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS\/Khaled Abdullah […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[26,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119958"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=119958"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119958\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":119976,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119958\/revisions\/119976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=119958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=119958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=119958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}