At least 11 Israelis were injured early Tuesday while rushing to shelters after a missile launched from Yemen targeted central Israel, according to Israeli public broadcaster KAN.

The Israeli army said its air defenses intercepted the missile before it entered Israeli airspace. Air-raid sirens were sounded across central Israel, prompting hundreds of thousands to seek shelter.

Medical teams treated 11 people for injuries sustained while running to shelters, with four others receiving treatment for panic, the broadcaster reported.

The Houthi group later confirmed that it had carried out the strike, saying that it targeted the Israeli Defense Ministry with a hypersonic ballistic missile.

The group's military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a televised statement that the strike was the third by the Houthis on Israel in a 12-hour period, vowing that attacks would continue until the Israeli war on Gaza ends and the siege is lifted.

The incident comes as reports suggest that Palestinians and Israelis are nearing a cease-fire and prisoner-hostage swap deal to end Israel's ongoing genocidal war on Gaza.

The Houthis, which have claimed several recent attacks on Israeli-linked ships in the Red Sea, said its operations against Israel would cease once the war on Gaza ends.

Since October 2023, Israel’s bombardment of Gaza has killed more than 46,500 people, according to local authorities, in what has been describe as Israel’s genocidal war.

In response to Houthi missile and drone attacks in the Red Sea, a US-led coalition has carried out airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen since early 2024, with occasional retaliatory strikes from the Houthis.