“The death toll has reached nine martyrs and 118 wounded in a preliminary tally as civil defence, ambulances and rescue teams are still searching for the missing,” Houthi health ministry spokesman Anees Alasbahi posted on X.

A large plume of grey smoke billowed above Sanaa as the sound of strikes echoed across the city.

“Martyrs, wounded, and several homes damaged as a result of the Israeli attack on the Moral Guidance Headquarters,” the rebels’ Al-Masirah TV reported.

The strikes also hit a station that provides fuel to hospitals in the capital, Essam al-Mutawakel, spokesman for the Yemen Petroleum Company, told the Al-Masirah news channel.

Two AFP journalists said a building used by the armed forces was hit.

Al-Masirah also reported Israeli strikes on government buildings in Al-Jawf, a northern province bordering Saudi Arabia.

The Israeli military said it struck Houthi rebel targets in Yemen, including in Sanaa, in the latest of a series of attacks during the Gaza war.

The Houthis said they were fighting back with air defences.

“Our air defences are currently confronting Israeli aircraft that are launching an aggression against our country,” said Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree on his Telegram channel.

The latest attack comes days after a drone launched from Yemen wounded a man when it struck Ramon airport in southern Israel.

Last month, Israeli strikes killed the Houthi prime minister and 11 other senior officials — the most high-ranking assassinations since Israel and the Houthis began exchanging fire over Israel’s Gaza war.

Since Israel’s war on Gaza erupted in October 2023, Israeli forces have killed at least 64,605 Palestinians and injured over 140,000 others, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

The United Nations declared famine last month in parts of Gaza, warning that 500,000 people face “catastrophic” conditions.

The Houthis have launched repeated drone and missile attacks against Israel, pressing it to agree to halt its genocidal war and blockade of the Gaza Strip, and have insisted they would stop attacks as soon as a ceasefire is established in Gaza.

In response, Israel has carried out repeated rounds of airstrikes in Yemen, targeting ports, power stations and the international airport in Sanaa, killing scores, many of them civilians.