Katz warns Houthi leader ‘Your time will come,’ says ‘Israeli flag will be raised’ above Yemen capital

Katz’s remarks came after multiple Houthi missile attacks against Israel on Thursday.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Defense Minister Israel Katz on Friday threatened Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi following a series of attacks on Israel, declaring, “Your time will come.”

Katz said the Houthi chief would “be sent to meet your government plenary and all those thwarted on the axis of evil, who are waiting in the depths of hell.” He added that the slogan carried on the Houthis’ flag, “Death to Israel, curse upon the Jews,” would be replaced by the Israeli flag “flying over the capital of a united Yemen.”

The remarks came after multiple attacks on Thursday. A Houthi drone crashed near the entrance of a hotel in Eilat, with no casualties reported. Hours later, the group launched a ballistic missile that triggered sirens in central Israel and Jerusalem. The missile was intercepted, and there were no injuries or damage.

The IDF confirmed that two additional drones were intercepted the same day. According to the military, these incidents are part of a broader campaign by the Iran-backed Houthis to strike Israel. Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive in Gaza, the Houthis have launched 87 ballistic missiles and at least 40 drones at Israeli territory.

Earlier in the week, Israeli aircraft struck Houthi targets at the port of Hodeidah in Yemen. “The Hodeidah Port is used by the Houthi terrorist regime for the transfer of weapons supplied by the Iranian regime, in order to execute attacks against the State of Israel and its allies,” the IDF said in a statement.

The strikes follow a series of escalations between Israel and the Houthis. On August 28, an Israeli strike in Yemen killed the prime minister of the Houthi government along with at least 11 ministers, further intensifying tensions.

US sanctions have also been imposed on the Houthis in recent weeks, targeting maritime smuggling operations that Washington says are used to fund attacks in the region.

The defense minister’s warning Friday signaled Israel’s readiness to expand its operations against the Houthis, amid ongoing threats from the group and its Iranian sponsors.