One dead in central Tel Aviv after drone attack claimed by Houthis

A drone attack in central Tel Aviv killed one person and injured several as the regional scope of the Israel-Hamas war was brought home to Israel.

The Houthi terror group in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack in the early hours of Friday in central Tel Aviv, not far from the beach and the US Embassy.

It was the deepest strike into Israeli territory claimed by the Houthis, who have focused their attacks on ships in the Red Sea and on the southern port city of Eilat since 7 October. Israeli authorities said human error prevented civilians from being alerted to the drone.

The drone exploded in the air, according to police at the scene, and shrapnel from the bomb killed one man and injured several others. Damage from the blast was visible in broken windows on the upper floors of surrounding buildings, at the intersection of Ben Yehuda Street and Shalom Aleichem Street, though conditions on the ground were mostly unaffected.

Miri Edri, a resident of a building at the blast site, said she was awake to hear the boom and saw a nearby construction bin ignite as shrapnel flew across the area. She said she screamed on hearing the explosion and is now surveying damage to the building she’s lived in for 20 years.

“I’m at home watching all the flames,” she said of the moments after the attack. “I felt a little pressure and stress. Look, it’s come here, to Tel Aviv. “

Hamas targeted Tel Aviv with missiles early in the war but the city has been mostly outside the fighting in recent months. Friday’s attack demomstrated that the regional conflicts sparked by the war, with the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah in addition to the Houthis and others, also have the potential of reaching Israel’s population centers.

The side street where the attack occurred had largely returned to normal by 9am on Friday, which is a weekend day in Israel. Police were still congregated in the area and a helicopter hovered nearby.

“The Tel Aviv-Yafo municipality has shifted to a state of heightened readiness in light of the difficult drone incident tonight,” Mayor Ron Huldai said in a statement. “The war is still here, and it is difficult and painful.”