A drone fired by Yemen’s Tehran-backed Houthi rebels struck the arrivals hall of Israel’s Ramon International Airport near the southern city of Eilat on Sunday, injuring one person and forcing a two-hour suspension of flights, Israeli authorities said.
Israel’s military said the Houthis launched several drones, most of which were intercepted outside the country, but at least one breached its air defenses and crashed into the passenger terminal.
The Airports Authority said the blast blew out windows and sent smoke plumes into the air, suspending the flights for two hours.
“Following the completion of all safety and security checks, compliance with international civil aviation standards, and receipt of final approval from the Air Force – Ramon Airport has now been reopened for full operations, for both departures and arrivals,” the authority said in a statement.
“The first flight from Ramon to Ben Gurion Airport (near Tel Aviv) is expected to depart shortly.”
Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency service said it treated a 63-year-old man for light shrapnel wounds. Reuters earlier reported that a 52-year-old woman was also injured.
The Houthis claimed responsibility for the strike, hailing it as “a unique, qualitative military operation.”
Nasruddin Amer, deputy head of the Houthi media office, wrote on social media: “Enemy airports are unsafe, and foreigners must leave them for their own safety. Other sensitive targets are under fire.”
The attack came just days after Israeli strikes on Sanaa killed Houthi prime minister Ahmed al-Rahawi and other officials, escalating the nearly two-year conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed group.
The Houthis vowed to escalate attacks after al-Rahawi’s killing, targeting both Israel and merchant ships in the Red Sea.
The Houthis have been firing missiles and drones at Israel since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 assault triggered the war in Gaza, saying their strikes are acts of solidarity with the Palestinians.
Houthi strikes on Israel
Since the Gaza war began, the Houthis have carried out at least six successful strikes on Israeli territory.
An investigation by the Israeli military found that the Houthis used a ballistic missile armed with a cluster bomb warhead in its attack on Israel last month. One of the munitions from the strike hit the yard of a house in the central Israeli town of Ginaton, causing minor damage.
In May, a Houthi missile struck near Israel’s main Ben Gurion Airport, injuring eight people.
Three of the Iran-backed group’s strikes on Israel came in December 2024.
On December 9, a drone launched from Yemen hit an apartment block in Yavne, between Tel Aviv and Ashdod, destroying two apartments.
Ten days later, on December 19, a missile fired by the Houthis hit a school in Ramat Ef’al, a neighborhood in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan, causing extensive damage.
On December 21, the Houthis fired the “Palestine 2,” which the group described as a hypersonic ballistic missile, that struck a playground in Jaffa, a district of Tel Aviv, injuring at least 16 people.
Last July, the Houthis fired a long-range Iranian-made drone from Yemen that struck central Tel Aviv, killing one man and wounding several others, according to Israeli authorities.
