Israeli warplanes launch new airstrikes on Yemen's capital

Sanaa, Aug 25 (IANS) At least two people were killed and 35 others wounded after Israeli airstrikes hit several locations in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, according to Houthi-run health authorities.

The casualties were reported at the Oil Company Station, a gas station run by the Houthi-controlled Yemeni Petroleum Company, one of several sites targeted in the city. Medics warned that the death toll could rise as more victims are being brought to hospitals, Xinhua news agency reported.

Fire crews were working to extinguish blazes triggered by the strikes in the south and west of Sanaa, said the Yemeni civil defense authority in a statement.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed in a statement that an air attack was carried out in Yemen.

The military said the sites included the presidential palace, the Asar and Hizaz power plants, and a fuel storage facility, which it said were being used for military activity.

Israeli state-owned Kan TV reported that 14 warplanes took part in the attack, dropping about 40 bombs in the area.

In a statement, the Houthi group accused Israel of "brutal aggression" against civilian facilities and held both Israel and the United States responsible for what it described as a "heinous crime."

The strikes came two days after Yemen's Houthis fired a hypersonic ballistic missile at Tel Aviv, damaging houses with shrapnel but causing no reported deaths.

The Houthis, who control much of northern Yemen, including Sanaa and Hodeidah port, have launched repeated attacks on Israel since November 2023, citing support for Palestinians in Gaza. Israel has retaliated with airstrikes on Houthi-held territory.

--IANS

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