Houthis Announce "Maritime Blockade" on Haifa Port

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis announced on Monday what they called a "maritime blockade" on Israel's Haifa port in response to Israel's ongoing conflict in Gaza.

"All companies with ships present in or heading to this port are hereby notified that, as of the time of this announcement, the aforementioned port has been included in the list of targets," the group's spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised address.

The Houthis have continued to fire missiles at Israel including on Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, although they have agreed to halt attacks on U.S. ships.

The missiles launched by the group on Israel were mostly intercepted.

Israel has carried out strikes in response, including one on May 6 that damaged Yemen's main airport in Sanaa and killed several people.

(Reuters/Reporting by Jaidaa Taha and Muhammad Al Gebaly; Editing by Chris Reese)