Has Israel defeated the Houthi drone threat from Yemen?

 The Houthi drone attack on Ramon Airport and the Western Negev leads to questions about whether the drone threat is suddenly changing or has still to be largely defeated.

First, a little background on the trend: On September 4, the Israel Defense Forces said that “in recent months, as part of the cooperation between the [Israel] Air Force arrays, dozens of unmanned aerial vehicles and surface-to-surface missiles launched from Yemen were successfully intercepted.” The interception of Houthi drones has become relatively rare. It is also seen as routine, to the extent that no sirens are usually sounded – and these interceptions could happen without anyone knowing it.

The trend changed on September 7, when there were several drones launched at Israel by the Houthis in Yemen. Two were intercepted on the way to Israel, but one crossed through the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula and threatened the Western Negev.

“Sirens regarding a hostile aircraft infiltration were sounded in the area of Nitzana. The details are under review,” the IDF reported. Soon after, another drone, also apparently launched by the Houthis, fell at Ramon Airport, and one person was lightly wounded by shrapnel. The IDF said that no sirens had sounded, and the incident is under review.

The incident on September 7 shows that Houthi drones can penetrate Israeli airspace. However, these incidents have been rare. In general, the drones do not enter Israeli airspace, and sirens do not sound because the threat does not reach Israel. Instead, they are being intercepted, once or twice a week, on the way to Israel.

With the exception of the Ramon Airport attack on September 7, the only reason the public knows about the continued drone threat from the Iranian-backed Houthis is because the IDF continues to tell the public that it is intercepting them.

“Earlier today, the IDF intercepted two UAVs that were launched from Yemen. No sirens were sounded in accordance with protocol,” the IDF said on September 4.

The IDF also intercepted another drone last Monday. On August 28, the IDF had reported, “A short while ago, a UAV launched from Yemen was intercepted by the IAF. The target was intercepted prior to crossing into Israeli territory.”

On August 22, the IDF noted that “A short while ago, sirens sounded in the communities near the Gaza Strip following the identification of a UAV launched from Yemen. Interceptors were launched toward the target.”

The Houthi drone threat has now become a trickle. However, the Ramon attack shows that it is still a threat and could become dangerous again.

In fact, it was always a trickle. Since the Israel-Hamas War began, the Houthis have launched numerous drones at Israel. However, they have usually only launched them in small numbers.

One drone killed a person in Tel Aviv in 2024. In general, though, the Houthi drone threat has not been deadly. The Houthis have sometimes appeared to achieve surprise by getting one of their drones to approach Israel from the Mediterranean. This is complex for them because it means flying more than 2,000 miles to reach Israel.

The Houthis learned to make drones from the Iranians. They initially deployed them against Saudi Arabia from 2015 to 2021. The Houthi drone threat increased during that era. The Houthis became proficient at attacking radars and airports and other installations.

Drone ranges have extended 

The Houthis also extended the range of their drones and used several types. Some of the drones consisted of a long tube-like fuselage with a warhead, guidance system, and long, rectangular wings. They were basically a large model airplane. Houthi drones and some of the systems used to guide them, such as gyroscopes, were traced over the years, linking them to Iran and to other countries where Iran exported its drones.

The Islamic Republic exported key pieces for the drones, such as engines, to Yemen. Iran didn’t usually send the drones in complete form. Rather, like the Houthi ballistic missile program, the Houthis learned to build drones on their own.

In January 2021, satellite photos published by Newsweek appeared to show that a new drone threat had emerged in Yemen. The Houthis had acquired the Shahed-136, capable of flying the distance from Yemen to Israel and clearly aimed at increasing the Houthis' capabilities to attack the Jewish state. It should have been a red flag, especially in the wake of the Iranian attack on Abqaiq in Saudi Arabia, using drones and cruise missiles in 2019.

Iran had shown that one could hobble the Saudi energy industry using relatively inexpensive drones and missiles. The Houthis had similar systems. This was a curtain raiser. Iran and its proxy groups, such as the Houthis, could do the same to Israel.

Iran exported the Shahed-136 to the Houthis and to Russia. By 2022, Russia had invaded Ukraine and was using Shahed-136s to attack Ukrainian cities. Russia initially used these drones by the dozens – meaning that they might launch from 20 to 100 drones a night at Ukraine.

However, by 2025, the Russians had vastly increased their drone capabilities. On the evening of September 6-7, they are estimated to have launched 800 drones at Ukraine. This is a massive and unprecedented number.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have launched one or two drones a week at Israel. This illustrates how their drone threat has been reduced but not completely defeated. It’s never good to underestimate an enemy; however, it is clear that, while the Iranians pioneered kamikaze drone threats, they have not been able to operationalize them successfully. Israel’s air defenses have outpaced the Iranian-backed drone threat.