MEZIESBLOG

Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant has commented on the strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen today, calling them “very impressive”. 

“Those who try to attack us or harm the citizens of Israel will pay a very heavy price,” he said. 

Four people have been killed in the attacks, which the Houthi media office said hit the Hodeida and Ras Issa ports as well as two power plants in Hodeida city. 

The city is a stronghold for Iranian-backed rebels. 

Israel has said the strikes were in response to a recent Houthi attack on its territory.

Number killed in Israeli attack on Lebanon rises to 32

A further eight people have died following an Israeli attack on the city of Ain Deleb in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. 

It earlier said 24 people had been killed and 29 injured. 

Analysis: Israel’s enemies miscalculated the level of risk it was willing to take

We’ve just been hearing from media analysts who say the recent Israeli attacks have left Hezbollah “reeling”. 

A Sky News correspondent, Deborah Haynes, says the recent Israeli operations – including degrading Hezbollah’s communications devices, killing its leader and taking out multiple commanders – show not just a desire to protect Israel’s borders but also to “restore deterrents”. 

Hezbollah and Iran had miscalculated the level of risk Israel was willing to take, she says. 

Haynes says Israel has crossed “red lines” that “would have been unthinkable in normal times, but these are not normal times”. 

Israel appears to have calculated that Iran will not seek out an all-out war. 

Iran in particular has shown “relative restraint” so far, Haynes says, but it may decide to go further now. 

Still, she says this would be a “gamble” as to whether Iran has the power to inflict enough damage to stop further Israeli offensives. 

This could also see Israel turn to the US and UK and potentially trigger an “all-out regional war”, she says.