Israel’s security cabinet met Sunday evening to determine its response to a Houthi missile attack outside Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv earlier in the day as the Yemen-based rebel group, led by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned international airlines to avoid a coming blockade of Israel’s largest airport. 

“In response to the Israeli escalation with the decision to expand aggressive operations on Gaza, the Yemeni armed forces announce that it will work to impose a comprehensive air blockade on the Israeli enemy by repeatedly targeting airports,” particularly Ben Gurion Airport, reads a statement on Yemeni news outlet Saba.

“It calls on all international airlines to take (this statement) into account and cancel all flights to the airports of the criminal enemy in order to preserve the safety of their aircraft and customers,” reads the statement.

Sunday’s strike, a rare success bypassing Israel’s missile defense systems, dug a deep crater about a football field away from the airport and caused minor injuries to travelers panicked by the sudden blast. It and two other intercepted ballistic missiles targeting Israeli territory on Thursday and Friday suggest a more sophisticated targeting system, one possibly supplied by Iran’s revolutionary guards.

“It is the IRGC,” the American Enterprise Institute’s Danielle Pletka tells the Sun. “It’s time to deal with them before they hit a commercial aircraft.”

In response to the attack, Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel will target not just the Houthis, but its benefactors as well. “Attacks by the Houthis emanate from Iran. Israel will respond to the Houthi attack against our main airport AND, at a time and place of our choosing, to their Iranian terror masters,” Mr. Netanyahu wrote in a post on X.

The Houthi rebel movement, which currently rules a third of Yemen’s territory and two-thirds of its population, has been operating as a willing partner to the Islamic Revolution since at least 2014. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps has long supplied drone parts, missile warheads, and anti-tank missile units to the Houthis and plays an advisory role to its military command. 

The relationship has evolved from a proxy fighting force to a brigade of Iran’s military leadership. Iranian vessels coordinate intelligence on ship movements for the Houthis to attack commercial shipping and American military vessels. The Houthis have targeted commercial and military ships more than 300 times between November 2023 and December 2024, with 57 successful attacks.

Last month, the USS Harry Truman dropped one of its fighter jets overboard, reportedly as the ship took evasive action to avoid Houthi rocket fire in the Red Sea, where U.S. Central Command is conducting operations against the group. Centcom has conducted at least 800 airstrikes targeting Houthi weapons depots, training camps, oil depots, leadership facilities, and other targets since the start of its most recent campaign March 15. The Houthis keep returning fire.

“Iran undoubtedly continues to provide support to the Houthis. The Houthis can only continue to attack our forces with the backing of the Iranian regime,” Centcom posted.

President Trump has warned Iran that any actions by the Houthis would be seen as an attack by Iran. 

“Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Defense Secretary Hegseth reiterated that warning last week. 

“We see your LETHAL support to The Houthis. We know exactly what you are doing. You know very well what the U.S. Military is capable of — and you were warned. You will pay the CONSEQUENCE at the time and place of our choosing,” Mr. Hegseth posted on X.

Iran denies that it is leading Houthi operations. The revolutionary guard “plays no role in setting the national or operational policies” of its allies, Gen. Hossein Salami said, according to Iran’s state-run TV. 

Nonetheless, Iran does little to disguise its alliances. On Sunday, Tehran’s foreign ministry condemned an attack by Sudanese Rapid Support Forces on the airport in Port Sudan, where Houthis train Hamas, according to Emirati political analyst Amjad Taha.

“The Houthis, in fact, are training members of Hamas and the jihadists in Sudan right now to use the drones. … If we don’t deal with it, we’re just waiting for another Bin Laden to grow in Sudan for him to carry out another 9/11,” he said.

As Israel determines how it will respond, Hezbollah and Hamas both celebrated the attack on Israeli military and commercial airport. “We praise the high-quality operation carried out by the Houthis, which targeted Ben Gurion Airport, breached all Zionist and American defense systems, achieved its goal with great precision, and shattered Israel’s power,” reported Israel’s i24news.com.

The Houthis are a “sister of Palestine that continues to challenge the oppressive forces,” said Hamas spokesman Abu Obeida.