Yemen’s Houthi militia claimed responsibility for a surface-to-surface missile attack targeting central Israel on Sunday morning, marking a continued escalation between the Iranian-backed group and Israel. The missile caused no direct injuries, Israel said, though the country’s Magen David Adom emergency services said it was treating nine people who were injured on their way to shelters after sirens sounded. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree described it as a “hypersonic ballistic missile” targeting military operations. The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that the missile was hit by an interceptor, “as a result of which the target fragmented but was not destroyed.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened a cabinet meeting by declaring Israel in a “a multi-front campaign against Iran’s axis of evil, which is striving for our destruction.” The Houthis, he said, “should have known by now that we exact a heavy price for any attempt to harm us.”

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