Israeli Navy strikes power plant in Yemen’s capital Sanaa, claims of hitting Houthi targets

As the tensions in West Asia continue to escalate, reports are emerging that the Israeli Navy struck a site in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, on Sunday. The Israel Defence Force (IDF) said that the strikes were aimed at a terrorist infrastructure site serving the Houthi regime.

Meanwhile, local Yemeni media and Reuters reported that at least two explosions occurred near a power plant in the city. Yemeni sources claimed that the blast struck the Haziz power plant in the southern part of Sanaa.

Soon after the strikes. Mashal al-Rifi, CEO of the Sanaa Electric Corporation, told local media the facility “was under attack, causing a temporary power outage.”

Amid the chaos, Houthi political bureau member Hazam al-Asad slammed the strike on his social media platform X, alleging that “a criminal enemy targets only civilian service facilities – electricity and water.”

A civil defence source speaking to Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV said the attack struck the plant’s generators in the Sanhan area south of Sanaa, forcing operations to halt. “Our teams are working to extinguish the fire caused by the incident,” the source furthered.

What is IDF saying?

Meanwhile, the IDF issued a statment stating that the strikes were conducted from a distance of 2,000 kilometres, deep inside Yemen, targeting an energy infrastructure site used by the Houthi terrorist regime. The Israeli military said that they were in response to repeated attacks on Israel, including the launching of surface-to-surface missiles and UAVs toward Israeli territory.

“The Houthi terrorist regime operates under the direction and funding of the Iranian regime to harm the State of Israel and its allies,” the IDF said. “It exploits the maritime domain to project force and carry out terror activity against global shipping and trade routes. The IDF will continue operating against the ongoing and repeated attacks and remains determined to remove any threat to the State of Israel wherever required,” it furthered.

It is important to note that the last reported Israeli airstrikes in Yemen occurred about a month ago, when the Israeli Air Force launched Operation Long Shadow against Houthi positions at the port of Hodeidah. The strikes targeted military infrastructure, fuel tanks and vessels used in the operation against Israel.