Houthi missile strikes central Israel for first time, no injuries reported

Yemen's Houthis fired a surface-to-surface missile that reached central Israel for the first time on Sunday, hitting an unpopulated area and causing no injuries.

Air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and across central Israel moments before the missile landed at around 6.30am local time (3.30am GMT). 

"Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in central Israel, a surface-to-surface missile was identified crossing into central Israel from the east and fell in an open area. No injuries were reported," the Israeli military said.

Houthi spokesperson Nasruddin Amer said in a post on X that a Yemeni missile had reached Israel after "20 missiles failed to intercept", describing the strike as the "beginning".

The attack marked the first time the Houthis had penetrated deep into Israeli airspace with a missile.

The Houthi movement, which controls the north of Yemen, has fired at Israel several times since last October in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. Most of those missiles have been intercepted, though one hit an open area near Israel's Red Sea port of Eilat in March.

In July, a Houthi drone reached Tel Aviv, killing one man and wounding four others. Israel retaliated with a major air strike on targets near Yemen's Hodeidah port, killing six people and injuring 80.