Houthi military chief killed in Israeli strike; group vows revenge

Sanaa: The Houthi movement in Yemen said on Thursday that its military chief, Major General Mohammed al-Ghamari, was killed in an Israeli strike and promised to exact “deterrent punishment” in response.

The group said Ghamari died “in honourable battle against the Israeli enemy”, adding that he was killed alongside companions and his 13-year-old son, without specifying the date of the attack.

The announcement came days into a ceasefire in the two-year Gaza war, during which the Houthis have repeatedly targeted Israeli vessels and infrastructure in the Red Sea. Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, posted on X that Ghamari “died of his wounds” following a late-August strike that also killed the Houthi prime minister and part of his cabinet. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Ghamari was “eliminated among a series of terrorist commanders who sought to harm us” and vowed further action.

The Houthis — aligned with Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance” — have traded strikes with Israeli and US forces during the Gaza conflict. In its statement the movement said it had launched 758 military operations using 1,835 munitions, including drones and missiles, and warned that the rounds of conflict were not over.

Major General Mohammed al-Ghamari’s death was confirmed by the Houthi general staff in a terse military statement published on Thursday. The statement described his death as occurring “in honourable battle against the Israeli enemy” and said he was killed together with companions and his son; it did not provide a date or further operational details.

Israeli officials linked the killing to a series of strikes in recent months. Defence Minister Israel Katz said on X that Ghamari “died of his wounds” after a strike in late August that killed other senior Houthi figures. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office posted that Ghamari had been “eliminated among a series of terrorist commanders who sought to harm us” and pledged to pursue other commanders.

The Houthis have been active participants in the wider regional spillover from the Gaza war, striking at Israeli targets and commercial shipping in the Red Sea in solidarity with Palestinian militants. The movement’s statement claimed it had carried out 758 military operations using a mix of drones and missiles — figures intended to demonstrate continued operational capacity despite recent losses.

The reported strike follows international concern about escalation in the Red Sea and Gulf shipping lanes, where attacks risk wider confrontation involving regional powers. The Houthis are backed politically and materially by Iran and are considered part of the “axis of resistance” opposing Israel and the United States. Exchanges between the group and Israeli or US forces have raised fears of broader regional retaliation.

At the time of writing, independent confirmation of the precise circumstances and timing of the strike that killed Ghamari was limited. The developing situation is likely to heighten tensions across the Red Sea corridor and influence diplomatic efforts to sustain the Gaza ceasefire.

(With AFP inputs)