Shrapnel was also reported to have fallen in the courtyard of an elementary school in Tzur Hadassah, a small community located in the Judean Hills southwest of Jerusalem.
Police reported several instances of missile interception debris falling across central Israel. Fragments landed on a soccer field in Tzur Hadassah, while in Moshav Eshtaol, debris struck the roof of a private home and the garden of another.
A returning Ryanair flight was forced to delay landing due to the missile launch.
Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett called for direct action against Iran in response to the Houthi missile attack, saying: “When the Houthis, an Iranian terror proxy, fire on Israel, Israel must respond in Tehran. Iran is the one funding, arming, training, and directing the Houthis. Iran has a lot to lose; the Houthis much less. That’s why Israel must exact a price from Iran. Only then will Iran understand: you don’t fire on the Jewish state.”
National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz echoed the call, highlighting a December X post in which he stated: “The solution to Yemen lies in Iran. We must not settle for retaliatory actions against the Houthis — it’s time to address the source.”
Overnight, reports from Yemen indicated that the U.S. conducted a series of airstrikes in the Sanaa area and other parts of the country, as part of its ongoing campaign in recent weeks against the terrorist group.
Last Thursday, a Houthi missile triggered sirens across central Israel, three days earlier, local media aired footage of a Houthi missile being intercepted over Jerusalem, while another triggered sirens in Tel Aviv last Sunday All the missiles were shot down, and no injuries or damage were reported in any of the attacks.
Since Hamas initiated the war on Oct. 7, 2023, the Houthis have fired more than 350 drones and missiles at the Jewish state in support of the Palestinian terror group, in addition to carrying out numerous attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea.
The Houthis resumed their attacks on Israel on March 18, marking the first time that the country’s air defences were activated against a threat from Yemen since mid-January, when a Gaza truce went into effect.
