Iran state television site hacked, made to announce death of Houthi leader
Iran, which backs the Houthis, has been critical of the recent escalation of tensions in Yemen and and has repeatedly called on Saudi Arabia to halt what it calls aggression.
Cyber hackers [illustrative](photo credit: REUTERS)ByJPOST.COM STAFFThe Twitter account of Iran's state television network announced the non-existent death of the rebel Houthi leader Malik Ali Houthi after being hacked overnight, Israel Radio reported Sunday.A spokesman from the channel called the cyber-attack against their site "psychological warfare" meant to raise the morale of opponents to the Shi'ite Houthi campaign to seize control of the country.No organization has yet to take responsibility for the cyber-raid.Iran, which backs the Houthis, has been critical of the recent escalation of tensions in Yemen and has repeatedly called on Saudi Arabia and its allies, who have deployed ground forces and air-power against the Houthis, to halt what it calls aggression.Yet Iran's support for the rebel Houthis, who captured Sana'a in September of last year and began their current push for full on revolution in January, extends beyond rhetoric.On Friday, two members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard were reportedly captured by local militiamen in the city of Aden, which has become a focal point of the war.According to the armed locals, who have been trying to beat back the Houthi advance on the city, the captured Iranians, who were serving in an advisory capacity to the Shi'ite rebels, are a captain and a colonel belonging to Iran's elite Quds Force.Iran's state media emphatically rejected the claim that Tehran was meddling in Yemen, describing the conflict in Yemen as one between the Houthi's against "al-Qaida terrorists and forces loyal to fugitive President [Abd Rabu] Mansour Hadi."According to the World Health Organization, over 540 people have been in killed in the last two weeks of fighting in Yemen, with about 2,000 injured. Aid agencies claim that some 100,000 have been displaced.Iran has already involved itself in at least two conflicts in the Arab World, deploying its proxy Hezbollah in Syria in order to aid embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad and directly sending its Revolutionary Guard forces, led by General Qassem Suleimani, to Iraq in order to take territory from the Islamic State group.RECOMMENDED STORIESAt least 35 people wounded following Iranian missile barrageJUNE 15, 2025Israel's airspace closed: How to enter, leave the Jewish state during Iran escalationsJUNE 15, 2025Iran reaches out to Qatar, Oman in attempt to broker ceasefire with US, IsraelJUNE 15, 2025Starlink operating in Iran, Elon Musk says, as Islamic regime shuts internet downJUNE 14, 2025Hot OpinionNow is the time for a unity government to provide clarity within the chaos - editorialByJPOST EDITORIALNetanyahu achieved his life's work by stopping a nuclear Iran, now it's time to resignByDAVID BRINNSitting in a quiet, destroyed neighborhood: At the heart of Iran's missile attack on Bat YamBySETH J. FRANTZMANIsrael had a window of opportunity to attack Iran and it was right to use it -ByYAAKOV KATZ