Tensions escalate after retaliation between Israeli and Houthi forces

On July 20 (local time), the Israeli military (IDF) used fighter jets to attack the port of Hodeidah in Yemen controlled by Houthi forces, in retaliation for a drone attack on Tel Aviv the day before, which killed one person.

Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported that an oil refinery was hit by shelling, killing and wounding several people.

After confirming the IDF's move to the press, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hodeidah port of being the place where Houthi forces received weapons aid from Iran and declared that Israel would "defend itself by all means."

For its part, the Supreme Political Council of the Houthi movement announced on the same day that it would have an “effective response” to Israeli airstrikes on the port of Hodeidah and would not hesitate to attack “important targets” in Israel.

Meanwhile, Lebanon's Hezbollah - an extraterritorial ally of the Houthis - assessed that the Israeli attacks on the port of Hodeidah marked a dangerous turning point in the nine-month war in Gaza, raising the risk of a confrontation across the region.