Israel intercepts missile from Yemen
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz warned of retaliation against the Houthis in Yemen after a missile was intercepted. File photo: Reuters
Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed to retaliate against Iran-aligned Houthis after his country's military intercepted a missile launched from Yemen toward Israeli territory.
"The fate of Yemen is the same as that of Tehran," Katz said in a statement, referring to last month's 12-day conflict during which Israel targeted Iran's nuclear and missile programmes.
"After striking the head of the snake in Tehran, we will also strike the Houthis in Yemen. Whoever raises a hand against Israel — that hand will be cut off," the statement said.
Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement released late on Tuesday.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group carried out four operations targeting an airport and other "sensitive" Israeli targets.
Israel has threatened Yemen's Houthi movement – which has been attacking Israel in what it says is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza – with a naval and air blockade if its attacks on Israel persist.
Since the start of Israel's war in Gaza in October 2023, the Houthis, who control most of Yemen, have been firing at Israel and at shipping in the Red Sea, disrupting global trade.
Most of the dozens of missiles and drones they have launched have been intercepted or fallen short. Israel has carried out a series of retaliatory strikes. (Reuters)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTHK
8 hours ago
- RTHK
Iran ends cooperation with UN nuclear watchdog
Iran ends cooperation with UN nuclear watchdog Iran decided to suspend cooperation with the IAEA following US and Israeli strikes on its nuclear facilities, including the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Facility (pictured). Photo: Reuters Iran officially suspended its cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog on Wednesday, a move the United States described as "unacceptable". It came after last month's 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel, which saw unprecedented Israeli and US strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities and sharply escalated tensions between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency. On June 25, a day after a ceasefire took hold, Iranian lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to suspend cooperation with the Vienna-based IAEA. State media confirmed on Wednesday that the legislation had now taken effect. The law aims to "ensure full support for the inherent rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran" under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, with a particular focus on uranium enrichment, according to Iranian media. Washington, which has been pressing Tehran to resume the negotiations that were interrupted by Israel's resort to military action on June 13, hit out at the Iranian decision. "We'll use the word unacceptable, that Iran chose to suspend cooperation with the IAEA at a time when it has a window of opportunity to reverse course and choose a path of peace and prosperity," State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said. The spokesman for UN chief Antonio Guterres said the decision was "obviously concerning". Separately, the Pentagon said on Wednesday that US intelligence assessments indicated that the strikes on Iran's nuclear sites set the country's atomic programme back by up to two years. "We have degraded their programme by one to two years at least – intel assessments inside the (Defense) Department assess that," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told journalists, later adding: "We're thinking probably closer to two years." While IAEA inspectors have had access to Iran's declared nuclear sites, their current status is uncertain amid the suspension. On Sunday, Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, said the inspectors' work had been suspended but denied there had been any threats against them or IAEA chief Rafael Grossi. He said that the "inspectors are in Iran and are safe", but "their activities have been suspended, and they are not allowed to access our sites". The new legislation did not specify any exact steps following the suspension. The ISNA news agency cited lawmaker Alireza Salimi as saying that the inspectors now needed approval from Iran's Supreme National Security Council to access nuclear sites. (AFP)
RTHK
8 hours ago
- RTHK
Hamas studies ceasefire deal amid Netanyahu threats
Hamas studies ceasefire deal amid Netanyahu threats Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Gaza City in the central Gaza Strip on Wednesday. Photo: AFP Hamas said on Wednesday it was studying what US President Donald Trump called a "final" ceasefire proposal for Gaza but that Israel must pull out of the enclave, while Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that Hamas would be eliminated. Trump said on Tuesday Israel had agreed to the conditions needed to finalise a 60-day ceasefire with Hamas after a meeting between his representatives and Israeli officials. In a statement, the Palestinian militant group said it was studying new ceasefire offers received from mediators Egypt and Qatar but that it aimed to reach an agreement that would ensure an end to the war and an Israeli pullout from Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the elimination of Hamas in his first public remarks since Trump's announcement. "There will not be a Hamas. There will not be a 'Hamastan'. We're not going back to that. It's over," Netanyahu told a meeting hosted by the Trans-Israel pipeline. The two sides' statements reiterated long-held positions, giving no clues as to whether or how a compromise agreement could be reached. "I hope it would work this time, even if for two months, it would save thousands of innocent lives," Kamal, a resident of Gaza City, said by phone. Others questioned whether Trump's statements would deliver long-term peace. "We hope he is serious like he was serious during the Israeli-Iranian war when he said the war should stop, and it stopped," said Adnan Al-Assar, a resident of Khan Younis in Gaza's south. There is growing public pressure on Netanyahu to reach a permanent ceasefire and end the nearly two-year-long war, a move opposed by hardline members of his right-wing ruling coalition. At the same time, US and Israeli strikes on nuclear sites in Iran and ceasefire agreed on in last month's 12-day Israel-Iran air war have put pressure on Hamas, which is backed by Tehran. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said his country was "serious in our will" to reach a hostage deal and ceasefire. "There are some positive signs. I don't want to say more than that right now. But our goal is to begin proximity talks as soon as possible," he said while visiting Estonia. A source close to Hamas said its leaders were expected to debate the proposal and seek clarifications from mediators before giving an official response. (Reuters)
RTHK
9 hours ago
- RTHK
Trump says trade deal struck with Vietnam
Trump says trade deal struck with Vietnam Trump said the United States will charge a 20-percent tariff for Vietnamese exports into America, and a 40-percent levy for trans-shipments. File photo: Reuters US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he had struck a trade deal with Vietnam under which the country would face a minimum 20 percent tariff and open its market to US products. The deal comes a week ahead of Trump's self-imposed July 9 deadline for steeper tariffs on US trade partners to take effect if agreements had not been reached. Trump initially announced that the trade deal had been reached, without providing details. "It is my Great Honor to announce that I have just made a Trade Deal with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam after speaking with To Lam, the Highly Respected General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. He said that under the "Great Deal of Cooperation," imports of Vietnamese goods will face a 20 percent US tariff, while goods that pass through Vietnam from other countries, or trans-shipments, will see a steeper 40 percent tariff. "In return, Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America Total Access to their Markets for Trade," he said. "In other words, they will 'open their market to the United States,' meaning that we will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff," he added. The president said he believed US-made SUVs, "which do so well in the United States, will be a wonderful addition to the various product lines within Vietnam." General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee To Lam welcomed a new trade agreement with the United States during a phone call with Trump, Vietnam News Agency reported. He urged Washington to soon recognise Vietnam as a market economy and to lift export restrictions on certain high-tech goods. The two leaders also discussed major directions and measures to further strengthen the Vietnam-US comprehensive strategic partnership in the coming years. Trump's announcement comes a week before the US has threatened to reimpose steep tariffs on dozens of economies, including the EU and Japan, many of which are still scrambling to reach deals that would protect them from the measures. Those higher tariffs are part of a package Trump initially imposed in April, citing a lack of "reciprocity" in trading relationships, before announcing a temporary lowering to 10 percent. Without a deal, Vietnam's "reciprocal tariff" would have risen from the baseline 10 percent to 46 percent. Since April, Washington had so far only announced a pact with Britain and a deal to temporarily lower retaliatory duties with China. Both involve the United States maintaining some of Trump's tariffs on the trading partners. (AFP/Xinhua)
