Yemen’s Houthi militants said they conducted an attack Monday on central Israel, after the Israeli military said it intercepted a missile fired from the Arabian Peninsula country.

In a statement, the Iran-backed Houthis said they carried out a “military operation targeting the Nahal Sorek military base” southeast of Jaffa, adding the “hit was accurate and led to a fire”.

Israeli firefighters were battling blazes west of Jerusalem, with the army saying the fires were sparked by debris from an intercepted missile fired from Yemen.

Firefighters were working to douse the blazes, conducting scans around Beit Shemesh to rule out more fires and “damage from interceptor/missile shrapnel,” the Jerusalem region fire service said.

In a statement, it said: “Following the sirens that sounded in the Shfelat Yehuda, Yehuda, and Lakhish areas of central Israel, the IAF (Israeli Air Force) intercepted one projectile that approached Israel from the direction of Yemen.

“The projectile did not cross into Israeli territory. Sirens were sounded in accordance with protocol.”

Yemen’s Houthi militants, part of Iran’s “axis of resistance” against Israel and the United States, have periodically fired drones and missiles at Israel since the start of the Gaza war.

The Houthis have also waged a harassment campaign against shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden during the Gaza war, severely disrupting the vital trade route.