Jerusalem, Dec 24 (IANS): The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Tuesday that it had intercepted a missile launched by Houthi forces in Yemen.

The missile, which was aimed at Tel Aviv, triggered air-raid sirens across central and southern Israel, forcing millions of residents to seek shelter just before 2 a.m. local time (0000 GMT).

"A projectile launched from Yemen was intercepted prior to crossing into Israeli territory," the IDF said in a statement, adding that the sirens were activated as a precaution due to the possibility of falling shrapnel from the interception.

Magen David Adom, Israel's emergency service, said that a woman was seriously injured after falling while rushing to a shelter, Xinhua news agency reported.

This missile attack came just a day after Houthi forces launched a drone strike on Israel, which was also intercepted, according to the IDF. The Houthis have sporadically targeted Israel since October in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

In retaliation, Israel has launched several large-scale airstrikes on Yemen, with the most recent one occurring on Thursday.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have been carrying out rocket and drone attacks on Israeli cities and disrupting 'Israeli-linked' shipping in the Red Sea to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas conflict there.

The Houthi group has been controlling much of Yemen since late 2014, forcing the internationally recognised Yemeni government out of the capital Sanaa.

Earlier on Dec 16, forces in Yemen launched a missile toward central Israel, triggering sirens in Tel Aviv and other cities, Israel's military said.

Israel's air defence systems intercepted the missile, and "sirens sounded due to the possibility of falling shrapnel from the interception," the military stated.

Israel's Magen David Adom rescue service reported that no injuries had been reported. No group claimed responsibility for the attack.