Yemen-based Houthis — the last of Iran-backed groups still fully present in the regional war that began 14 months ago — are slowly escalating attacks on Israel with an eye to avoid full-out retaliation.

Multiple air raids have hit several targets in rebel-held areas of Yemen, witnesses and the Iran-backed Houthi rebels said, with their media saying Israel launched the strikes.

The Israel Defense Forces claimed responsibility for a series of airstrikes in Yemen on Thursday it claimed were targeting Houthi military infrastructure.

Rebel forces in Syria are building a transitional government after toppling the regime of President Bashar Assad in a lightning-quick advance across the country.

The IDF confirms launching airstrikes against the Houthis in Yemen in response to the Iran-backed terror group’s repeated ballistic missile and drone attacks on Israel in recent weeks. In a statement,

Israel has reportedly launched waves of attacks across Yemen in retaliation for Houthi missile and drone strikes. Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Israel Defense Forces warplanes hit Sanaa International Airport in the Yemeni capital,