In a significant and deeply troubling escalation, a missile launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels reportedly struck near Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport late Wednesday, raising urgent questions about the effectiveness of Israeli and American air defenses and the broader strategy to contain the Houthis’ expanding regional reach.
Israeli defense officials confirmed that the missile, launched from Yemen, evaded multiple layers of air defense and detonated in an open area near the perimeter of the airport, briefly grounding flights and triggering emergency protocols. No casualties were reported, but the incident has caused shock within Israeli security circles and among allies in Washington.
The missile breach is the first confirmed instance of a Houthi projectile reaching so close to Israel’s most critical civilian infrastructure. It underscores the growing sophistication of the group’s arsenal — including long-range ballistic missiles and cruise systems — much of which Western officials say is supplied or enhanced by Iran.
“This was a clear failure of our multilayered defense architecture,” a senior Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters. “We will assess and recalibrate, but this highlights the evolving capabilities of the Houthis — and the regional threats we now face.”
The attack also marks a turning point in U.S. efforts to weaken the Houthis’ ability to project power beyond Yemen. Since late 2023, the United States has led a series of airstrikes targeting Houthi missile depots, radar systems, and drone launch sites, often in coordination with British and Saudi forces. Yet, as this latest strike shows, those efforts may have only slowed — not stopped — the group’s expanding reach.
U.S. CENTCOM issued a brief statement acknowledging the attack, reiterating its commitment to defending regional allies but offering no indication of immediate military retaliation. “The Houthis remain a destabilizing force in the Red Sea and beyond,” the statement read. “We continue to assess the evolving threat landscape in coordination with our partners.”
Military analysts say the attack was likely symbolic as well as strategic. “Striking at or near Ben Gurion Airport sends a potent message,” said Michael Horowitz, a Middle East security expert. “It shows the Houthis can hit where it hurts — not just shipping lanes or military bases, but national nerves.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting of the security cabinet late Wednesday and vowed a strong response, though he did not elaborate. Opposition lawmakers criticized what they called a growing “sense of strategic drift,” accusing the government of underestimating the Houthi threat.
The Houthis, meanwhile, celebrated the strike in a televised statement, calling it “a message to the Zionist enemy and its American backers.” The group has steadily expanded its narrative of solidarity with Palestinians and anti-Israeli rhetoric, positioning itself as part of a broader “axis of resistance” that includes Hezbollah and Iranian proxies in Syria and Iraq.
As of Thursday morning, Ben Gurion Airport had resumed partial operations, but authorities said heightened security measures would remain in place.
The failed interception raises broader questions about the limits of current U.S. strategy in the region — particularly the difficulty of neutralizing asymmetric threats like the Houthis without becoming mired in another costly military entanglement.
“This isn’t just about Israel’s defenses being breached,” said a former U.S. intelligence official. “It’s a wake-up call that the Houthis are not contained — and the tools we’re using to contain them may not be enough.”
https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/04/middleeast/flights-halted-at-israel-airport-yemen-strike-intl
