The military says that a UAV was detected but not destroyed by air defenses, and the sirens were not activated because of human error. Iran-backed Houthis claim an attack and vow to continue to target city.

A drone carrying explosives launched by Iran-backed Houthis from Yemen hit an apartment in central Tel Aviv at dawn on Friday, killing one Israeli and injuring others.

A preliminary investigation by the Israeli Air Force revealed that the unmanned aerial vehicles had been identified but, due to an error by a person, they were not detected by air defenses.

No warning sirens were sounded as no action was taken to stop the target, which later proved to be a large drone with a long range.

In a press briefing, IDF spokesperson Rear Admir. Daniel Hagari stated that the drone had directly hit an apartment building at 3:12 a.m. after arriving from Yemen.

According to the investigation, the drone was identified by the IDF to be an Iranian Samad-3 that had been modified for a longer range. It had flown into the country at low altitude for several hours.

Magen David said that shrapnel was responsible for the death of a man in his fifties. The ambulance service reported that the man had been found dead in a building.

Later, the victim was named Yevgeny Ferrer. Hebrew media reported that he had moved from Belarus to Israel two years prior to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

MDA said that eight people were also taken to local hospitals. Four of them were injured by shrapnel, or shock waves. Four of the other four people are being treated for anxiety.

The impact site was located near several hotels as well as the Tel Aviv branch office of the United States Embassy. As of Friday morning the Israeli military had no intelligence that indicated the drone attack was directed at the embassy.

Many hotels in this area house displaced Israelis, who are forced to leave their homes along the southern and northern borders due to the ongoing conflict.

The massive explosion came out of nowhere, according to a man who lives close by the impact site.

“I went to sleep and suddenly, I heard an explosive like I had never heard before.” “I thought maybe I hadn’t heard the sirens,” Aviel told Kan. “I thought that after seven months of serving in the reserves we would have left the country better off.” The apartment is covered with dust, and there are things that fell on us.

A beachgoer filmed a video of the drone, which was laden with explosives and flew low over Tel Aviv, passing the US Embassy compound before crashing into an apartment building.

The impact was also captured on other surveillance cameras.

Hagari stated in his press briefing that the IAF believed that the drone was from Yemen. The Houthis of Yemen claimed responsibility for the earlier attack.

Yemen’s Houthis military spokesperson stated that the group would continue to attack Israel as a sign of solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza War.

The spokesman stated that Tel Aviv would continue to be the primary target of the terror group, “within our range of weapons.”

The group claimed to have launched a drone capable of bypassing radar detection systems.

According to the IAF announcement, the US Central Command’s Friday announcement describing the destruction of Houthi drones and missiles referred to events that occurred on Thursday morning, and not to the attack overnight.

According to the IAF, fighter jets also shot down a drone that was heading in the direction of Israel from the east, most likely from Iraq. This drone was probably originating from Iraq.

Israel Defense Forces reported that on Friday morning an alleged drone which entered Israeli airspace via Lebanon was shot down. In the Galilee, sirens were sounded due to fears of shrapnel falling.

Shouldn’t it have happened?

The IAF claimed that the Tel Aviv incident “shouldn’t even have happened”, and took full responsibility for its failures which led to this deadly attack.

The IDF released a statement saying that the incident was “under investigation.”

According to the military, IAF fighter jet patrols will be increased “to defend Israeli skies”.

The Home Front Command has not changed its orders, it said.

Hagari said that the military would be conducting assessments in the next few days to determine what they need to do to improve their defense and “what offensive response is required against those who threaten Israel.”

Israel will respond, according to Defense Minister Yoav Galant.

The Defense Establishment is strengthening all defense systems immediately and will punish anyone who harms or terrorizes Israel, he stated in remarks released by his office after an assessment with IDF officials regarding the Houthi drone strike.

Gallant met the Chief of Staff of the Israeli Air Force Brig. Brig. Brig. Gen. Ofir Mizrahi Rosen.

Tel Aviv’s Mayor Ron Huldai stated in a press release that the city had “moved to a higher level of alertness” after the attack.

Huldai continued, “the war is still going on and it’s painful and difficult.” He said that “we are prepared” for any developments.

Houthi attacks on multiple occasions in the past months

Yemen’s Houthis fired dozens missiles and drones — mostly towards the southernmost city Eilat — to show solidarity with Gaza Strip terrorists.

Most of the projectiles fired by the Iran-backed group have either been intercepted or missed their targets by US forces in the Red Sea, Israeli fighter jets and Israeli air defenses. In March, a Houthi cruise missile struck Israel in an open area near Eilat.

Israel appears to have a policy of not responding to the Houthi attacks.

Iran-backed Houthis who control large parts of Yemen and seized the capital Sanaa, Yemen, in 2014, are part of an “axis of resistance against Israel” along with Hamas, which is also sponsored from Tehran.

Houthi rebels expressed their support for Palestinians, and they also threatened Israel during the Israel-Hamas conflict. The Iranian-backed group has a slogan that says “Death To America, Death To Israel, Curse The Jews, Victory For Islam.”

Since November, the Houthis fired on military and commercial ships in the Red Sea dozens of time.

Houthis claim to be targeting Israeli ships in Gaza during the Hamas-Israel offensive. They have targeted ships on numerous occasions.