IDF shoots down Houthi missile launched from Yemen in sixth attack over past week

The Israel Defense forces (IDF) intercepted a missile fired by the Houthi terror group in Yemen on Monday evening, the military stated.

The missile was shot down outside Israeli territory, according to the IDF.

The missile attack triggered rocket alert sirens across large swathes of central Israel, from the outskirts of Jerusalem to the greater Tel Aviv area.

A ballistic missile launched at Israel by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was successfully intercepted by air defenses, the military says.

The IDF says the missile was shot down before crossing the country's borders. Footage appears to show shrapnel falling down following the… https://t.co/5233s1NspG pic.twitter.com/8egpoSBPks

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 24, 2025

Footage circulating on social media ostensibly showed large pieces of shrapnel in the immediate aftermath of the interception being visible from the Jerusalem area.

Residents from Jerusalem to Modi’in reported hearing the loud sound of an explosion, most probably from the interception.

Rocket sirens in Tel Aviv, all of central Israel, also Jerusalem with large booms heard in Modiin. The ballistic missile from Yemen was intercepted. pic.twitter.com/ztsq3GY9B1

— Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر (@emilykschrader) March 24, 2025

This was the sixth missile attack by the Houthis over the last week. After joining Hamas in the ceasefire two months ago, the Yemeni terror group renewed its attacks on Israel after the aid flow to the Gaza Strip was cut, in an effort to pressure Hamas to continue releasing Israeli hostages.

In response, the Trump administration announced the start of a broad campaign against the Houthis, which entered its tenth day of consecutive airstrikes in Yemen on Monday.

The terror group said that a strike in its capital of Sana’a killed one and wounded over a dozen people.

I’m at a wedding just outside Jerusalem. The missile siren caught us in the middle of the ceremony. Most of us crouched on the ground; some sought shelter indoors. We heard explosions in the distance. The bride and groom were nonplussed and the ceremony continued within minutes. pic.twitter.com/KpXwBtwVtV

— Avi Mayer אבי מאיר (@AviMayer) March 24, 2025

The Saudi al-Hadath network reported that a senior Houthi official was killed in the strike, without specifying his name or position.

Other American strikes recently targeted Houthi sites near the city of Saada, the seaport of Hodeidah, and sites in the Maarib province.

In an interview with CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz noted that the American strikes have “taken out key Houthi leadership, including their head missileer. We've hit their headquarters. We've hit communications nodes, weapons factories, and even some of their over-the-water drone production facilities.”

In addition to their attacks on Israeli, it was the Houthis’ threats against international shipping lanes that caused President Trump to declare a broad campaign against the terror group.

“We've had one of the world's most critical sea lanes get shut down,” Waltz said, blaming the previous U.S. administration for its “pin-prick” strikes against the Houthis.

“I mean, these guys are like al Qaeda or ISIS with advanced cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and some of the most sophisticated air defenses, all provided by Iran. Just so everybody understands the impact here, the last time one of our destroyers went through the straits there, it was attacked 23 times."

"75% of our U.S. flag shipping now has to go around the southern coast of Africa rather than going through the Suez Canal. And keeping the sea lanes open, keeping trade and commerce open, is a fundamental aspect of our national security,” Waltz explained.