By Rohan Gunaratna
Introduction
Houthi movement’s Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi was killed in an Israeli attack in Sanaa, Yemen on August 28, 2025. The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) attack was in retaliation to Houthi’s Ansarullah missile and drone attacks against Israel. al-Rahawi had led the Houthi cabinet in Yemen since 2024. The IDF assesses that the Houthi cabinet — including the prime minister and 12 others — were killed in IDF strikes in Yemen.
The IDF described the strike as a complex operation, based on rapidly emerging intelligence, aimed at eliminating the Houthi leadership. The attack in Yemen was launched following fresh intelligence received in the preceding 24 hours. The plan was quickly approved by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and Defense Minister Israel Katz.
“This was a precise action exploiting a narrow intelligence window,” the army said, noting that the strike was carried out at long range by an Air Force unit with Military Intelligence support. Israel said it is preparing for possible retaliation from Yemen. Likewise, several Houthi strikes conducted at the behest of Iran’s intelligence service were thwarted.
The Houthi spokesperson initially denied that its leaders were killed. Twenty fours after, the Houthis claimed that its leaders were killed in the IDF strike. Houthis claim the leaders were at a “routine workshop held by the government to evaluate its activities and performance over the past year.” Unverified reporting identified among the Houthi ministers killed – as the ministers for foreign affairs, justice, youth and sports, social affairs and labour. The IDF sources said that the assessment of the strike is still ongoing.
IDF Spokesperson: Alerts were activated in several areas across the country including in Jerusalem following a launch from Yemen on Aug 27, 2025. Although the Houthi missile was intercepted by Israel, the IDF decided to retaliate by eliminating the Houthi leadership.
The Context
The Islamic Republic of Iran is the patron of the Houthi movement, a Shi’ite entity. In solidarity with the Palestinians, the Houthis declared war on Israel and periodically fired missiles and drones at Israel. The Houthis held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, the Houthis had launched over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of attack drones and cruise missiles at Israel. One particular Houthi attack killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July 2025, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.
Since March 18, 2025, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 72 ballistic missiles and at least 23 drones at Israel. Several missiles have fallen short.
After the Houthi leadership was eliminated on August 28, 2025, the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said, “The Houthis operate as an additional terrorist branch of Iran, continue to attack Israel, and threaten regional and international stability. Our message is clear — there will be no tolerance.”
The Houthis acknowledged that the IDF attack killed its most important leader. “We announce the martyrdom of the fighter Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser Al-Rahawi… along with several of his ministerial colleagues, as they were targeted by the treacherous Israeli criminal enemy,” a statement by Houthi leader Mahdi al-Mashat says.
The gathering of senior Houthi leaders was attended by both military and political leaders mostly cabinet ministers. Israeli sources say: “The direction is positive – we estimate that we succeeded.” Among the targets the Israelis said were the Houthi Chief of Staff whom Israel tried to eliminate during the operation in Iran but was injured and survived. Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, whose weekly speech was broadcast at the same time, apparently was not present at the location. The IDF delivered ten munitions weighing a ton each per bomb.
In a statement, the Houthi presidency said it was “mourning a new group of martyrs, including national leaders, amid the battle with the Israeli entity.” It said additional ministers were seriously and moderately wounded but insisted the government would continue to function and provide services. “The institutions will not be harmed, no matter the scale of the disaster,” it said. The statement included a vow of retaliation. “The blood of the martyrs will be fuel and motivation to continue on this path,” the Houthis said. “We promise our people, the Palestinian people and the entire Ummah that we will remain steadfast in our support for Gaza, continue to build our forces and develop our capabilities to face all challenges and dangers.”
In addition to the Prime Minister, IDF also targeted the Houthi defense minister, Muhammad Nasser al-Attafi who reportedly was injured. He has been in his role since 2016 and is considered the senior-most official in the organization’s military establishment. He established a close relationship with Iran’s premier intelligence service – the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Also targeted was Houthi chief of staff Muhammad Al-Ghamari, who was reportedly seriously hurt, but not killed. The Israeli strike in Yemen conducted during Israel’s brief war with Iran in June 2025 targeted him. Israeli top targets include the Houthi Minister of Defense al-Atifi and Chief of General Staff, Major General Muhammad Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari. As they spearheaded the attacks against Israel, the IDF has tried to eliminate both al-Atifi and al-Ghamari several times before, including during the Twelve-Day War with Iran. Israel will continue to target them in the foreseeable future. Israel always believes that punishment should follow crime. They are considered “walking dead” for targeting Israel and its citizens.
After the Houthi movement declared war on Israel, it fired missiles and drones. In response, IDF struck Yemen decapitated its leaders. In the above photo: The Houthi Prime Minister, Two Deputy Houthi Prime Ministers, Chief of Staff of the Houthi Prime Minister’s Office, Secretary of the Houthi Government, Houthi Foreign Minister, Houthi Information Minister, Houthi Justice Minister, Houthi Minister of Welfare and Labor, Houthi Minister of Electricity and Energy, Houthi Minister of Agriculture, Houthi Minister of Sports, Houthi Deputy Interior Minister, Head of Intelligence of the Houthi Government. A member of Iran’s axis of resistance, the Houthi movement will replace these leaders and continue to target Israel – inviting periodic retaliation by Israel.
Operation ‘A Bit of Luck’
The IDF launched Operation ‘A Bit of Luck’ in retaliation to unprovoked Houthi attacks on Israel. On Aug 27, 2025, Israel successfully intercepted a missile launched from Yemen. On August 28, 2025, Israeli Air Force successfully shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) launched from Yemen. Another UAV was detected a few hours later. The persistent attacks prompted IDF to target the Yemeni leadership acting at the behest of Iran’s intelligence service – the IRGC. Israeli leadership upon the recommendation of the IDF decided to retaliate by eliminating the Houthi leadership.
The afternoon air strike in Yemen, Operation A Bit of Luck, was launched following precise intelligence information that reached the IDF Intelligence Department in the preceding 24 hours. The intelligence reported that the senior leaders in the Houthi regime planned to meet to watch the speech of the Houthi leader Abd Malik al-Houthi, Israel’s priority target.
After this realization, a rapid planning session was held, attended by the prime minister, the minister of defense, and the chief of staff of Israel.
A formation of fighter jets was dispatched to Yemen, using a ruse that allowed the planes to reach the Yemeni capital, 2,000 kilometers from Israel, in secrecy, to attack with ten munitions the structure where the Houthi leaders were intending to gather.
Within the structures were the senior military, security and political figures of the Houthi regime. The supreme Houthi leader was not the target of the attack.
Within the building was most likely the Houthi chief of staff, Mohammed al-Omari, whom Israel had attempted to assassinate two months earlier. With him, the top brass, the Houthi defense, interior and foreign ministers were gathering. Houthis has not been forthcoming with its losses. The IDF is still conducting a battle damage assessment to ensure that all those who were in the building were either eliminated or wounded.
On Aug 31, 2025, the IDF released details of its strike on August 28 2025 in an announcement titled, “IDF Struck a Facility That Hosted a Gathering of Senior Military Officials and Additional Senior Officials of the Houthi Terrorist Regime in the Sanaa Area.” The IDF statement said, “On Thursday, IAF, guided by intelligence from the IDF Intelligence Directorate, struck a facility that hosted dozens of senior officials of the Houthi terrorist regime.
Among the senior officials present at the site during the strike was the Houthi Prime Minister, Ahmed Al-Rahawi, who was eliminated in the strike, along with additional senior officials of the Houthi terrorist regime.
At the facility were senior officials responsible for the use of force, the military buildup of the Houthi terror regime, and the advancement of terror actions against Israel, along with other key Senior Houthi officials.
Israel’s policy after the Hamas massacre of October 7, 2023 is “If someone comes to kill you, rise early and kill him first.’” On Aug 31, 2025, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said: “The day before yesterday, we delivered an unprecedented knockout blow to the top security-political leadership of the Houthi terror organization in Yemen, in a daring and brilliant IDF operation. The Houthi Prime Minister, most of his ministers, and other senior officials were eliminated or injured. I warned that after the ‘Plague of Darkness’ would come the ‘Plague of the Firstborn’—and now we have carried out that warning. The fate of Yemen is the fate of Tehran—and this is only the beginning. The Houthis will learn the hard way that whoever threatens and harms Israel will be struck sevenfold, and they will not decide when this ends. We will continue to pursue an offensive policy on all fronts with a clear and sharp message: ‘If someone comes to kill you, rise early and kill him first.’”
The strike was made possible by seizing an intelligence opportunity and completing a rapid operational cycle, which took place within a few hours.
The IDF will continue to operate to remove any threat posed to Israeli civilians, just as it operates and will continue to operate in the Gaza Strip and all additional arenas.
The Threat Trajectory
The Iranian-supported Houthis have controlled much of north-western Yemen since 2014, after ousting the internationally recognised government from Sanaa and triggering a devastating civil war. Directed by Iran’s IRGC, the Houthis has been attacking Saudi Arabia’s commercial and the UAE’s civilian targets.
At the behest of its patron Iran, Ansarullah of the Houthi movement has been attacking both international shipping and Israel. By targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, Ansarullah has disrupted shipping and trade.
Like the Iranian regime, the Houthis slogan too calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews.” Houthi movement’s Ansarullah began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre in Israel.
In response to the Houthi attacks, Israel and a U.S.-led coalition pounded the Houthi-held areas in Yemen, including Sanaa and the strategic coastal city of Hodeida. Israeli strikes knocked the Sanaa airport out of service in May 2025.
The Trump administration announced a deal with the Houthis to end the airstrikes in return for an end to attacks on shipping in May 2025. The Houthis, however, said the agreement did not include halting attacks on targets it believed were aligned with Israel.
The targeting of Houthis leaders marks an escalation in Israeli approach and strategy. The shift from striking infrastructure to targeting their leaders is aimed at regime change.
The Future
The IDF strike marked the 16th time that Israel has attacked Ansarullah in Yemen, located some 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) away. Israel has steadfastly developed a capability to dismantle the Houthi’s Ansarullah, a group run by Iran’s IRGC. The IDF targeted assassination on August 28 came four days after Israeli strikes on Sanaa killed 10 people and wounded more than 90 on August 24. The Israeli military targeted Houthi military sites, including the presidential palace.
The Aug. 24 strike came three days after the Houthis launched a ballistic missile at Israel, which its military described as the first cluster bomb the Houthis had launched. The Israeli killing of Houthis leaders is unlikely to halt the Iranian-backed group’s missile and drone attacks on Israel.
The very same way Israel crippled Hezbolllah in Lebanon, Israel will shatter another of Iran’s proxies, the Ansarullah in Yemen. Eventually, both Israel and the US will not only dismantle Iran’s Shi’ite proxies – Hezbollah, Ansarullah – and Sunni proxies – Hamas, Islamic Jihad – but their patron – Iran. Together with the US, Israel will decapitate their leaders, the very same way Washington DC eliminated General Qasem Soleimani. General Solaimani, the commander of the Quds Force, an IRGC division responsible for extraterritorial and clandestine military operations was eliminated in a US drone strike in Baghdad, Iran on January 3, 2020.
The international community seek a regime change in Iran where the Ayatollahs have ruled and ruined Iran since 1979. Such a scenario will require engaging the Iranian public that has suffered from the rule of the Ayatollah-led regime in Tehran.
Rohan Gunaratna is the editor of the Handbook of Terrorism in the Middle East. To conduct field research, Prof Gunaratna visited Yemen and interviewed its leaders and foreign terrorist fighters from July 17-21, 2010. A brief can be accessed here.