Four explosive-laden drones launched by the Houthis in Yemen were shot down by Israeli air defenses near the Red Sea resort city of Eilat within an hour on Tuesday afternoon, the Israel Defense Forces said.
Sirens sounded in Eilat at 2:36 p.m. for the first Houthi drone, and again at 2:58 p.m., when two more drones reached the coast off of Israel’s southernmost city. The fourth drone did not set off alerts in Eilat, as it was downed before getting close enough to pose a threat.
All four drones were successfully intercepted by the Israeli Air Force, the military said.
There were no reports of injuries or damage.
The attacks came amid the Sukkot holiday and on the second anniversary of the Hamas terror group’s devastating October 7 onslaught in which 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.
The Houthis, an Iran-backed terror group, have repeatedly attacked Israel with ballistic missiles and drones, saying they are doing so in support of the Gaza Strip amid Israel’s war there against Hamas.
The group has targeted Eilat with drones numerous times. Last month, a Houthi drone hit the resort city, wounding over 20 people. Earlier this week, the municipality and IDF Home Front Command installed 10 new mobile bomb shelters in Eilat in the wake of that attack.
The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre that sparked the war in Gaza.
The Iran-backed rebels held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, they had fired over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of drones and cruise missiles at Israel, including one that killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July 2024, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.
Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 91 ballistic missiles and at least 45 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.
In response, Israel has attacked the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, located some 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) away, 19 times.