Sanaa(Yemen), August 31(HS): The Yemen Houthi rebel movement confirmed the death of their self-proclaimed Prime Minister, Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser al-Rahawi, along with several other senior ministers in an Israeli airstrike that targeted the capital city of Sanaa on Thursday. The Iran-backed Houthis said the strike hit a government workshop attended by top officials, marking the first operation that killed senior Houthi leadership in the ongoing conflict. Israeli Defense Forces acknowledged conducting the strike based on intelligence regarding the gathering, aiming to disrupt Houthi attacks launched against Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Key ministers in justice, youth and sports, social affairs, and labor were also reported killed or injured. Rahawi, in office since August 2024, was largely considered a symbolic figurehead rather than a core military strategist. Following the strike, deputy prime minister Muhammad Ahmed Miftah was named to succeed him. The incident underscores escalating hostilities as Houthis persist in missile attacks towards Israel and target shipping lanes in the Red Sea, prompting repeated Israeli retaliatory air campaigns on Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar