BBC Photo (File): Yemen’s Houthi’s military chief Mohammed al-Ghamari
Source: BBC
DST News: Yemen’s Houthi movement announced that its military chief of staff, Major General Mohammed al-Ghamari, has been killed. The statement offered no operational details but said Ghamari and his teenage son died during what it called an “honourable battle against the Israeli enemy.”
Israel has carried out multiple air strikes in Houthi-held areas of Yemen in retaliation for repeated Houthi drone and missile assaults on Israel and commercial shipping in the Red Sea tied to the Gaza conflict. Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, said Ghamari succumbed to wounds from an Israeli strike on Sanaa in late August that also killed the Houthi-appointed prime minister and other ministers.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described Ghamari as another leader “in the line of terror chiefs” who sought to harm Israel and vowed the country would pursue those responsible.
The Iran-aligned Houthis have governed much of north-west Yemen since expelling the internationally recognised government a decade ago, triggering a destructive civil war. After the October 2023 Israel–Hamas war began, the Houthis started targeting Israel and international vessels in the southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, saying their actions supported the Palestinians. The US and UK have also struck Houthi military targets in response.
In Thursday’s statement, the Houthis said many civilians and fighters had been killed during what they called “criminal American-Zionist aggression” over the past two years. They named Ghamari (identified as Mohammed Abdul Karim al-Ghamari) and his 13-year-old son Hussein among the “great martyrs,” framed their deaths as a proud fulfilment of religious duty, and promised retaliation.
Israel’s defence minister posted on X that Ghamari had “joined his thwarted comrades” and reiterated Israel’s efforts to neutralise Houthi threats. The Israeli military has not reported further Houthi missile or drone attacks since Israel and Hamas agreed a Gaza ceasefire last week. Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said the group remains prepared to act against Israel if the ceasefire terms are not honoured.
