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Israel Strikes Houthi Targets in Yemen, Killing at Least Four People

Flames and smoke rise from the site of Israeli air strikes at the port of Hodeidah, Yemen July 21, 2024. (Reuters)
Flames and smoke rise from the site of Israeli air strikes at the port of Hodeidah, Yemen July 21, 2024. (Reuters)
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Israel Strikes Houthi Targets in Yemen, Killing at Least Four People

Flames and smoke rise from the site of Israeli air strikes at the port of Hodeidah, Yemen July 21, 2024. (Reuters)
Flames and smoke rise from the site of Israeli air strikes at the port of Hodeidah, Yemen July 21, 2024. (Reuters)

Israel said it bombed Houthi targets in Yemen on Sunday in response to missile fire by the Iran-aligned militants at Israel over the past two days, marking another front in fighting in the Middle East.

The Israeli strikes killed at least four people and wounded 29, the Houthi-run Health Ministry said in a statement, and residents said the bombing had caused power outages in most parts of the port city of Hodeidah.

Israel's military said in a statement that dozens of aircraft, including fighter jets, had attacked power plants and a sea port in Hodeidah and the port of Ras Issa.

It was the second such Israeli attack on Yemen in just over two months. In July, Israeli warplanes struck Houthi military targets near Hodeidah after a Yemeni drone hit Tel Aviv and killed one man.

"Over the past year, the Houthis have been operating under the direction and funding of Iran, and in cooperation with Iraqi militias in order to attack the State of Israel, undermine regional stability, and disrupt global freedom of navigation," the military statement said.

Yemen's Houthi militants, backed by Iran, have repeatedly fired missiles and drones at Israel in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians, since the Gaza war began with a Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

In their latest attack, the Houthis said they had launched a ballistic missile on Saturday towards the Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, which Israel said it had intercepted. Israel intercepted another Houthi missile on Friday.

In a post on X, Mohammed Abdulsalam, a spokesperson for the Houthis, said Sunday's Israeli strikes would not cause the group to "abandon Gaza and Lebanon".

Iran condemned the Israeli strikes, saying they had targeted civilian infrastructure, and President Masoud Pezeshkian said Israel should not be allowed to attack countries in the Iran-aligned "Axis of Resistance" one after the other.

The Houthi movement earlier mourned Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, its ally in an Iran-backed alliance opposing Israel, following his death in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.

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Arab World

Egyptian Program to Develop Abrams Tanks Alarms Israel

The M1A1 Abrams tank. (Egyptian Ministry of Military Production)
The M1A1 Abrams tank. (Egyptian Ministry of Military Production)
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Egyptian Program to Develop Abrams Tanks Alarms Israel

The M1A1 Abrams tank. (Egyptian Ministry of Military Production)
The M1A1 Abrams tank. (Egyptian Ministry of Military Production)

Former military officers have confirmed that Egypt is working with the United States to boost its armored forces by introducing technological upgrades and modern combat specifications to a large number of M1A1 Abrams tanks, raising alarm in Israel.

According to Israel’s Nziv.net platform, there are major Israeli concerns about a shift in the regional balance of power after Washington recently approved a huge deal to upgrade 555 Abrams tanks out of 1,130 American tanks in the Egyptian army.

The military factory in the Abu Zaabal area north of Cairo, the only facility authorized outside the United States to produce components of this model, will oversee the development project at a cost of around $4.69 billion.

The M1A1 Abrams tank is the Egyptian army’s main battle tank, with a top speed of 20 miles, according to data from the Egyptian Ministry of Military Production.

National security expert Mohamed Abdel Wahed told Asharq Al-Awsat that this was not the first time Egypt develops these tanks. It did so in the 1980s through a joint military production agreement with the United States.

The latest agreement to develop the tanks was signed in 2024. It called for refurbishing the existing vehicles instead of replacing them with new ones that would have come at a higher cost.

“Egypt is developing this tank and capitalizing on its global reputation. The development involves incorporating modern technology to boost its capabilities,” Abdel Wahed explained.

Former Egyptian intelligence official Gen. Mohammed Rashad told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The upgrades include installing a higher-caliber gun to increase the firing range to 105 mm, upgrading the aiming and targeting systems to use lasers, reinforcing the tank’s armor against close-quarters combat and anti-tank weapons, installing a recoil suppressor on the tank’s gun to maintain stability and aiming accuracy, and fitting the tank with a high-powered engine to boost speed and maneuverability.”

“These capabilities make the Egyptian Armored Corps one of the most advanced and lethal armies in the region, with high combat capabilities in all circumstances, which is a direct cause for concern in Tel Aviv,” he explained.

Abdul Wahed added: “Egypt is manufacturing 90 percent of the components for this tank. Localizing military technology and industries in Egypt is very important.”

Israeli media has over the past two years frequently reported about Tel Aviv’s concern over what it described as “the detection of the construction of massive logistical infrastructure and fuel depots in the Sinai Peninsula.”

They alleged that these measures would allow Egyptian forces to move rapidly and extensively eastward, forcing Israel to maintain close and continuous monitoring of the deployment and movement of Egyptian forces despite the peace treaty between them.

Egypt has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying its work in Sinai has development purposes and any deployment of the military aims to protect the border and national security.

Rashad said the Israeli concerns over the Egyptian military’s upgrades and tanks program stem from its “fear that the Egyptian armored forces will become capable of matching Israel’s.”

Tel Aviv constantly boasts about its capabilities that are a result of continuous upgrades to weapons and combat equipment, he added, noting that its military ranks seventh globally in the manufacture and export of weapons and combat equipment.

Arab World

Several Israeli Strikes Hit South Lebanon

Smoke rises following an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 16 June 2026, after the announcement of a US-Iran mediated preliminary framework to end regional military hostilities. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 16 June 2026, after the announcement of a US-Iran mediated preliminary framework to end regional military hostilities. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
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Several Israeli Strikes Hit South Lebanon

Smoke rises following an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 16 June 2026, after the announcement of a US-Iran mediated preliminary framework to end regional military hostilities. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 16 June 2026, after the announcement of a US-Iran mediated preliminary framework to end regional military hostilities. EPA/ATEF SAFADI

Israeli forces on Wednesday carried out airstrikes on several areas in south Lebanon, state media reported, despite a peace deal in the Middle East war that includes Lebanon.

Lebanon's National News Agency said Israeli warplanes launched raids targeting the Nabatieh al-Fawqa area and the eastern outskirts of neighboring town Kfar Tebnit.

The Israelis also launched a drone strike on the town of Ansariyeh in the Zahrani area, NNA reported.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday issued a rare public rebuke of Israel's military tactics in Lebanon targeting Hezbollah, saying it was unnecessary to bomb entire apartment buildings to hunt militants.

Trump, who in recent days had expressed his displeasure over Israeli attacks in Beirut that he said could have endangered his peace deal with Iran, said Israel has been fighting Hezbollah for "too long.”

"Too many people have been killed. You don't have to knock down an apartment house every time you're looking for somebody, because there are a lot of people in those apartment houses, and they're not all Hezbollah," Trump said at the G7 summit ⁠in France.

His complaint comes ⁠at a moment of rising tensions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has remained a key political ally despite occasional ups and downs between the two leaders over the years.

Arab World

Trump Criticizes Israel’s Tactics in Lebanon, Says It Is Killing Civilians

US President Donald Trump points his finger towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as they shake hands during a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 29, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump points his finger towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as they shake hands during a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 29, 2025. (Reuters)
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Trump Criticizes Israel’s Tactics in Lebanon, Says It Is Killing Civilians

US President Donald Trump points his finger towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as they shake hands during a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 29, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump points his finger towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as they shake hands during a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 29, 2025. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday issued a rare public rebuke of Israel's military tactics in Lebanon targeting Hezbollah, saying it was unnecessary to bomb entire apartment buildings to hunt fighters.

Trump, who in recent days had expressed his displeasure over Israeli attacks in Beirut that he said could have endangered his peace deal with Iran, said Israel has been fighting Hezbollah, the Iran-aligned Lebanese group, for "too long".

"Too many people have been killed. You don't have to knock down an apartment house every time you're looking for somebody, because there are a lot of people ‌in those apartment ‌houses, and they're not all Hezbollah," Trump said at the G7 ‌summit ⁠in France.

His complaint comes ⁠at a moment of rising tensions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has remained a key political ally despite occasional ups and downs between the two leaders over the years.

Recently, tensions have been more prominent. Israeli officials are quietly expressing frustration about the Iran deal that the Republican president struck while Trump is growing impatient with Netanyahu over Israeli strikes of Beirut, which triggered Iranian attacks just when he was working to finalize the peace deal.

Trump said he has ⁠a "great relationship" with Netanyahu but in the same breath added that he ‌should be "more responsible" with Lebanon.

"Without us, without the United ‌States, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel, because no other president ‌was willing to do what I did."

The two leaders have repeatedly clashed over ‌Israel's refusal to constrain its pursuit of Hezbollah in Lebanon, where a cessation of hostilities is a key Iranian demand. Trump and other US presidents do not often criticize Israel's military tactics.

Shortly after he made his comments, an official White House social media account that typically shares clips of his public comments posted ‌a video of those specific remarks.

The White House did not say why the official account chose to post those Trump remarks ⁠but said the ⁠president has a strong relationship with Netanyahu and that the Israel Defense Forces were "incredible partners".

"There has been no greater friend to Israel and a fighter for peace than President Trump... Americans and our allies around the world are already safer for the United States and Israel’s bold actions to deny the Iranian regime the ability to develop a nuclear weapon," a White House official said.

There is no indication that Trump's comments would translate into meaningful policy that would force Israel to rethink its military tactics in a way to ensure greater protection for civilians.

Israel has faced sharp criticism from other countries, particularly during its assault on Gaza that has killed 73,000 people, most of them civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry.

Israel says it never targets non-combatants and says armed groups such as Palestinian Hamas and Hezbollah regularly use civilians as human shields.

A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in Washington did not have any comment for this story.