The latest Israeli strikes against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen revealed that members of the group are hiding in residential areas in the capital Sanaa to evade the attacks.
The Houthis have hidden in the houses of their opponents after being forced to flee from their stronghold in the al-Jaraf neighborhood.
Informed sources in Sanaa told Asharq Al-Awsat that the most prominent Houthi leaders have hidden in the lavish houses of their rivals, whether they are former officials, merchants or lawmakers.
They are acting on strict orders to regularly change their places of residence to evade attacks.
The latest Israeli strikes on Thursday targeted three locations used by the Houthis. One hit a house near a water plant in a residential neighborhood, another a hiding spot in the Jabal Atan area and the third near the presidential complex that the Houthis use to hold important leadership meetings.
The sources confirmed that the Houthis closed roads leading to those areas after the attacks. One of the targeted buildings was levelled to the ground in the Israeli strike.
The prime minister of the Houthi-run government and several other ministers were killed in the strike on Sanaa, the head of the Houthi Supreme Political Council said on Saturday, in the first such attack to kill senior officials from the group.
Israeli army radio said the precision strikes were carried out based on intelligence from 24 hours earlier that confirmed that over ten senior military and political leaders were at the targeted building.
Israel said on Friday that the airstrike had targeted the group's chief of staff, defense minister and other senior officials and that it was verifying the outcome.
Since Israel's war in Gaza against the Palestinian group Hamas began in October 2023, the Houthis have attacked vessels in the Red Sea in what they describe as acts of solidarity with the Palestinians.
They have also frequently fired missiles towards Israel, most of which have been intercepted. Israel has responded with strikes on Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, including the vital Hodeidah port.
During the last year, Israel carried out a series of assassinations targeting senior leaders and commanders of Hamas and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, significantly weakening both groups.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Saturday that the strike was "a crushing blow" against the Houthis, adding that "this is only the beginning."
