Houthi ballistic missile explodes in Ben-Gurion Airport, forces suspension of flights

Israel’s largest airport temporarily halts departures and arrivals due to ballistic missile attack launched from Yemen.

By World Israel News Staff

Ben-Gurion International Airport, Israel’s primary air travel hub, was forced to briefly suspend both incoming and outgoing flights on Sunday morning after Houthi terrorists operating in Yemen launched a ballistic missile toward central Israel.

At approximately 9:20 a.m., warning sirens were sounded across central Israel after a projectile launch from Yemen was detected by Israel’s early warning systems.

Multiple interceptor missiles from the country’s missile defense network were fired in an attempt to shoot down the incoming ballistic missile, an IDF spokesperson said, though the military said it was unable to confirm whether the Houthi missile was successfully intercepted.

“Following the alerts activated in several areas across the country, multiple interception attempts were made toward a missile launched from Yemen,” the army spokesperson said. “An impact was identified in the area of Ben Gurion Airport. The incident is under investigation.”

Authorities later said that the missile struck an open area just outside of Ben Gurion Airport’s Terminal 3 – the primary terminal for international civilian air travel to and from Israel.

According to a statement issued by the Israel Police, the missile landed in an orchard and did not cause any casualties.

Police added that it is unclear whether the entire missile or merely a portion of the projectile landed outside of the orchard.

“Following the impact near Ben Gurion Airport, it has been confirmed that the impact occurred in an orchard near Terminal 3. There are no casualties. It is not yet known whether the object is merely a remnant,” the police stated.

An explosion was heard at least 20 kilometers (12 miles) away, and footage taken from the scene confirms a large blast at the scene of the strike.

Despite the initial report by police that no injuries were caused by the missile strike, the Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency first responder organization reported that its volunteers treated eight patients injured directly or indirectly by the explosion.

Two women, ages 54 and 38, were mildly injured with blast injuries, the MDA said, and a 50-year-old man suffered mild-to-moderate injuries.

In addition, a 64-year-old man was lightly injured by a flying object after the explosion.

Four other people were treated, including two suffering from panic after the attack and two women who were injured while rushing to bomb shelters.