Aden (South24 Center)

Israeli forces carried out airstrikes on Tuesday (September 16) targeting the Houthi-controlled port of Hodeidah, hours after Tel Aviv issued warnings to evacuate the facility and all berthed vessels.

Local witnesses told ‘South24’ that more than ten strikes hit the port’s docks and surrounding areas, triggering powerful explosions and thick plumes of smoke. Houthi-run media reported that the group’s air defenses attempted to repel the attack, claiming that at least 12 Israeli raids were conducted.

In an official statement, the Israeli military said the strikes targeted “Houthi military infrastructure”, accusing the group of using the port as a hub for smuggling Iranian weapons“employed in attacks against Israel and its allies”.

Israel Hayom cited a security source as saying the strikes specifically focused on disabling the port’s docks, while Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the operation aimed to render the port inoperable for several more weeks.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that the strike was “carried out in response to the repeated attacks by the Houthi terrorist regime against the State of Israel, including the launch of UAVs and surface-to-surface missiles towards the State of Israel”, according to The Jerusalem Post.

The strike was launched after Israel’s Arabic Spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee warned civilians to evacuate the area. Adraee also asked ships anchored at the port to evacuate, and warned that anyone who remains "puts their life in danger”.

Meanwhile, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency issued an urgent warning to commercial vessels of “significant risks” to navigation in the southern Red Sea, urging ships to exercise maximum caution near Hodeidah. Local media confirmed that evacuation of vessels had already begun following Israel’s warning.

 Houthi sources said the group on Tuesday buried 32 journalists killed in earlier Israeli strikes on the capital Sana’a last week (September 10).

The Hodeidah attack comes just a day after the Houthis announced a fresh assault using four drones against Ramon Airport near the southern Israeli city of Eilat and a military site in the Negev desert (September 15).

 Read more at: New Houthi Attacks Target Israel's Ramon Airport

The Houthis’ first launched drone attacks on Ramon Airport on September 7, when a drone hit the arrival hall, causing minor injuries and limited damage. The following day, the Israeli military reported intercepting additional drones and temporarily shutting the area’s airspace.

Israel responded on September 10 with a series of heavy strikes on Sana’a and Al-Jawf, described as among the most intense since the escalation began, leaving 211 people dead or wounded, according to Houthi authorities.

Those strikes hit government facilities and military targets, including the Ministry of Defense and Houthi-linked camps. On September 14, the Israeli army said it intercepted another drone launched from Yemen toward the south. The Houthi operation on September 15 and Israel’s strikes on Hodeidah on September 16 mark a sharp escalation in the widening cycle of mutual attacks.