US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke on Friday with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant following Thursday night’s Houthi drone attack which hit a residential building in Tel Aviv located one block away from the US Embassy Branch Office.
Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement following the conversation that Austin “expressed his condolences for the Israeli citizen killed and others wounded in the attack”.
The Secretary of Defense also “reaffirmed the United States' ironclad commitment to Israel's security and Israel's right to self-defense,” the statement added.
Thursday night’s attack killed Yevgeny Perder, 50. Perder was found in his bed approximately two hours after the incident.
Footage uploaded to social media shows the Iranian-made Samad-3 drone flying over the beach and the first line of buildings, including the US Embassy Tel Aviv branch office, and exploding slightly further inland.
The Samad-3 is a kamikaze drone which according to the Arab press can fly a distance of 1,500 to 1,700 km. The drone has "advanced technologies," which makes it less detectable.
Following the UAV strike, the US Embassy in Israel released a statement saying that no diplomatic personnel had been injured.
"We are aware of the drone strike near the US Embassy Branch Office in Tel Aviv this morning, for which the Houthis claimed responsibility. There was no damage to the US Embassy Branch Office building. We have no reports of injuries of US personnel or our locally-engaged staff. We are in close contact with Israeli authorities to fully investigate the source of the explosion and its intended target," stated an embassy spokesperson.
US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew wrote on X, "Shocked by the brazen Houthi drone attack in Tel Aviv this morning. We offer our condolences to the family members of the individual who passed away. We are thankful our U.S. Embassy Branch Office personnel are all safe."
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)