In a dramatic escalation of the Yemen-Israel conflict, the Houthi movement in Yemen has vowed fierce retaliation after a series of Israeli airstrikes killed their prime minister and several senior officials last week. The strikes, which targeted a high-level government workshop in the Houthi-held capital of Sanaa on August 28, 2025, have set off a wave of anger and promises of revenge, while also triggering fresh violence and international condemnation.
According to China Daily, the Israeli airstrikes on Thursday marked the first time such a high number of senior Houthi officials were killed in a single attack. The Houthi-backed government confirmed that Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi, along with several ministers, died when Israeli warplanes targeted their meeting. The group, which controls much of northern Yemen, including Sanaa, stated that other ministers were wounded and remain hospitalized, though the precise number of casualties has not been disclosed. The attack followed an earlier Israeli strike on August 24 that killed 10 people and wounded over 90, according to Houthi health officials.
In response, the Houthi movement quickly appointed Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed Miftah to lead a caretaker government in Sanaa. Houthi-run al-Masirah TV broadcast the announcement, emphasizing that the leadership vacuum would be filled without delay. The group’s top officials issued a series of defiant statements, promising that Israel would face consequences for its actions. Mahdi al-Mashat, head of the Supreme Political Council—the Houthis’ highest governing body—declared in a televised speech, “Israel should await dark days.” He added, “Our stance remains as it is and will remain until the aggression ends and the siege is lifted, no matter how great the challenges. We shall take vengeance, and we shall forge from the depths of wounds a victory.”
Other Houthi leaders echoed this sentiment. Houthi Defense Minister Mohammed Nasser al-Atifi told Saba News Agency that their forces “are ready at all levels to confront” Israel, while military chief of staff Mohammed Abdulkarim al-Gumari warned, “the Israeli aggression on civilian sites will not pass without punishment.”
Israeli officials, for their part, described the August 28 operation as a “significant” strike aimed at the Houthi Cabinet as its members watched a speech by Abdulmalik al-Houthi, the group’s leader. Israeli media, citing unnamed sources, reported that the air force targeted the prime minister and 12 other ministers. The operation was intended to disrupt what Israel sees as a growing threat from the Houthis, who have been launching drone and missile attacks against Israel since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians during the ongoing Gaza conflict.
Iran, a key backer of the Houthis, swiftly condemned the Israeli airstrikes. As reported by the IRNA news agency, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called the attack “a clear example of aggression against the Yemeni people and their legitimate government during a time of intense struggle against Israel.”
The fallout from the attack was felt on multiple fronts. On September 1, 2025, hundreds of Yemenis gathered at Sanaa’s Shaab Mosque for the funeral of Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi and his fellow ministers. According to reports cited by Al-Masirah TV, the funeral procession was marked by anti-Israel and anti-U.S. chants, with mourners paying their respects to al-Rahawi, who was buried alongside the ministers for foreign affairs, media, culture, and industry.
That same day, the Houthis launched a missile at the Israeli-owned oil tanker Scarlet Ray near the Saudi Red Sea port of Yanbu. Maritime security firm Ambrey confirmed the strike, but reported that the tanker suffered no damage and all crew members remained safe. The vessel’s operator, Eastern Pacific, stated that the ship was fully operational following the incident. This attack is just the latest in a series of Houthi strikes on Red Sea shipping since 2023, which have severely disrupted a trade route that carries an estimated $1 trillion in goods annually. The Houthis have repeatedly framed these attacks as acts of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
The missile strike on the Scarlet Ray came on the heels of another controversial move by the Houthis: the detention of 11 United Nations staff members after a raid on U.N. offices in rebel-held areas. This incident, reported by multiple agencies, has drawn international concern and further complicated efforts to mediate the ongoing conflict.
Since seizing Sanaa in 2014 and forcing the internationally recognized Yemeni government into exile in Aden, the Houthis have maintained control over much of northern Yemen, including the strategic port city of Hodeidah. Their government in Sanaa has faced persistent opposition from both Yemeni and international actors, but the group has shown remarkable resilience, even in the face of devastating airstrikes and a blockade that has crippled Yemen’s economy and humanitarian situation.
Israel’s military campaign against the Houthis is closely linked to its broader operations in Gaza, where it has escalated efforts to evacuate Palestinians from Gaza City. This plan has been condemned by foreign governments and criticized within Israel as unnecessary and costly. The United Nations has declared a famine in Gaza, and Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, stated, “It is impossible that a mass evacuation of Gaza City could ever be done in a way that is safe and dignified under the current conditions.”
The human toll of the conflict continues to mount. On September 1, 2025, Gaza’s health authorities reported that 66 people were killed in a single day. Since October 7, 2023, Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has claimed over 63,000 lives and injured more than 160,000 others, according to official figures. The violence has displaced the vast majority of Gazans at least once, leaving many without homes or access to basic necessities.
At a rally in Tel Aviv on the same Saturday as the Sanaa funeral, families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza warned that the impending Israeli offensive could put their loved ones at even greater risk. The rally underscored the complex web of suffering and fear that now stretches from Yemen to Israel and Gaza, touching the lives of civilians on all sides.
Meanwhile, the United States has tried to broker limited agreements to reduce the risk of escalation. In May 2025, Washington announced a deal with the Houthis to halt their attacks on Red Sea shipping in exchange for an end to U.S. strikes. However, the Houthis made clear that this agreement did not extend to their operations against Israeli-aligned targets, leaving the door open to continued violence.
As the dust settles over Sanaa and the Red Sea, the region remains on edge. The deaths of the Houthi prime minister and senior ministers have not cowed the movement; instead, they have galvanized calls for vengeance and further destabilized an already volatile landscape. With both sides vowing to press on, the prospect of peace seems as distant as ever.
