- Israel hits Iran petrochemical plant in new strikes despite Trump reprimand
- The Houthi military claimed that all targets of the missile strike had been precisely hit
- The attacks targeted Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel and Tel Nof Airbase near Tel Aviv
Houthi rebels from Yemen’s Ansar Allah movement have carried out a missile strike on targets in the Tel Aviv area and announced a ban on Israeli shipping in the Red Sea, according to a statement by the Houthi military.
“The Yemeni armed forces have launched missiles at important targets of the Israeli enemy in the occupied Jaffa area (Tel Aviv – TASS), which were precisely hit,” the statement reads.
The rebels also announced “a full and complete ban on the Israeli enemy’s shipping in the Red Sea.” “We believe that all enemy movements become a military target for our armed forces from the moment this statement is published,” the Houthis added.
Meanwhile, Iran has carried out strikes on two Israeli airbases, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement.
According to the document, cited by Iran’s Al Alam TV channel, the attacks targeted Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel and Tel Nof Airbase near Tel Aviv. The strikes were launched in retaliation for Israel’s actions, the IRGC said.
The Iranian military “is ready to carry out operations on all fronts” and has prepared response options for any enemy actions, the IRGC added.
This is as Israel said on Monday it hit a petrochemical plant in Iran’s southwest, along with strikes elsewhere on military targets, after US President Donald Trump reportedly told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refrain from further attacks.
In the first hit on an energy site inside Iran since the April 8 ceasefire, Israel said it struck targets at the Mahshahr petrochemical complex, while a provincial official told Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency parts of the plant were damaged.
Israel warned of a third barrage of missiles was incoming from Iran late Monday morning and urged the public to take shelter.
Hours earlier, Trump said new strikes by Israel and Iran would not affect his administration’s peace talks with Tehran, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “doesn’t call the shots.”
Trump has leaned on Israel to stop its attacks in Lebanon to allow room for a deal to end the wider war with Iran, including rebuking Netanyahu with obscenities in a phone call last week.
However, earlier on Sunday Israel launched strikes in the Beirut area for the first time since the US announced a truce plan for Lebanon last week. Iran fired salvos of missiles at Israeli targets in retaliation, putting US-Iran peace talks at risk. But Trump insisted that an agreement to end the wider war remained well within reach.
“It’s not going to have any impact on the deal,” Trump told the Financial Times. “I call the shots. I call all the shots. He (Netanyahu) doesn’t call the shots.”
A few hours later, Israel’s defense forces said they had struck Iranian military targets. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Israel used air-launched ballistic missiles in its attacks.
Iran had fired 11 ballistic missiles at Israel, its ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, said on X, adding, “Everyone has had enough of this maniacal Iranian regime.”
Israel was targeting Iran’s surface-to-surface missile launch sites and infrastructure facilities, he said, adding, “No self-respecting country in the world would tolerate such an attack, and neither will Israel.”
In a brief statement, Israel’s defense forces said, “The Israeli Air Force struck several targets at the petrochemical complex in Mahshahr.”
No further details of Monday’s damage were immediately available. Iran’s state media have said enemy projectiles have hit five production lines at the plant since the Iran war began on February 28.
Written with reports from TASS, Arab News