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Netanyahu vows revenge after Houthi missile strikes close to Israel's main airport

Heavy duty machines remove debris after Yemen's Houthi group attack the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel on May 04, 2025
Heavy duty machines remove debris after Yemen's Houthi group attack the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel on May 04, 2025. Picture: Getty

By Kit Heren

Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed retribution after a Houthi airstrike hit close to the country's main airport.

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Footage has emerged which seemingly shows drivers taking cover from a projectile on a road near the airport.

The airport has since resumed flights after a brief shutdown.

Israeli emergency services have said four people were injured in the blast, and a further two were injured trying to seek shelter.

Military spokesperson for the Houthi Yahya Saree has released a televised statement, telling people that the Israeli airport is “no longer safe for travel”.

Mr Netanyahu said: "We attacked in the past, we will attack in the future".

Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz has issued a statement on the strike, promising repercussions.

“Anyone who hits us, we will hit them seven times stronger.”

Read More: UK launches airstrikes on Yemen - joining US in campaign against Houthi rebels

Read More: Full Yemen attack plans discussed by Trump cabinet in leaked Signal group released in full

Mass protest against US airstrikes in Yemen, which have reportedly killed civilians
Mass protest against US airstrikes in Yemen, which have reportedly killed civilians. Picture: Getty

The Yemen Houthi rebels have sent several similar strikes to Israel in solidarity with Palestine - but they are usually intercepted by Israel’s missile detection system.

The Israeli Air Force has said they are investigating the failure to intercept the missile.

The UK has recently sent missile strikes into Yemen, in a US-backed campaign against the Houthi rebels.

The Ministry of Defence has said the strikes were in response to a series of Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Members of Israeli security services fill up a crater near a road outside Israel's Ben Gurion airport
Members of Israeli security services fill up a crater near a road outside Israel's Ben Gurion airport. Picture: Getty

Meanwhile Israeli cabinet ministers are meeting to vote on whether to intensify military operations in the Gaza Strip, as the army began to call up thousands of reserve soldiers, officials said.

Plans to escalate fighting in Gaza more than 18 months after the war erupted come as a humanitarian crisis in the territory deepens.

As part of its efforts to pressure the militant group Hamas to negotiate on Israel's terms for a new ceasefire, Israel in early March halted the entry of goods into Gaza, which has plunged the territory of 2.3 million people into what is believed to be the worst humanitarian crisis since the war began.

An eight-week ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that brought a lull in fighting and freed Israeli hostages collapsed in March. Israel resumed its strikes on Gaza on March 18 and has captured stretches of the coastal enclave.

Israeli security forces take measures after Yemen's Houthi group attack the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv
Israeli security forces take measures after Yemen's Houthi group attack the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. Picture: Getty

Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed since the fighting resumed, according to local health officials. At least six Israeli soldiers have been killed.

An Israeli official said the country's influential security cabinet will meet on Sunday evening to vote on plans to expand the fighting. A military official said the country was calling up thousands of reserve soldiers.

Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, in an interview with Israeli Army Radio, said he wanted a "powerful" expansion of the war, but did not disclose details.

"We need to increase the intensity and continue until we achieve total victory. We must win a total victory," he said.