Israeli Air Strikes Hit Yemen Airport as WHO Chief Narrowly Escapes Attack

A wave of Israeli air attacks struck Yemen’s main airport in Sanaa on Thursday, narrowly missing World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who was preparing to board a flight, Al Jazeera reports.

The attack wounded one of the UN plane’s crew members, according to the WHO chief.

Tedros stated on social media that the aerial bombardment occurred “as we were about to board our flight from Sanaa.” He confirmed that one crew member was injured in the attack. There has been no immediate comment from Israel regarding the incident.

The Houthi-controlled Saba news agency reported that three people were killed in the Sanaa airport strikes and another three were killed in strikes on the key port city of Hodeidah. They also claimed that 40 people were wounded in total from the Israeli attacks.

The Israeli military said it had targeted infrastructure used by Yemen’s Houthi rebels at the Sanaa airport, as well as power stations and ports. They alleged these locations were being used to smuggle Iranian weapons and for the entry of senior Iranian officials.

The Houthis have repeatedly fired drones and missiles toward Israel, claiming these actions are acts of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

UN spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay said the WHO delegation had just concluded discussions on the humanitarian situation in Yemen and were negotiating the release of detained UN staff members.

Following the attacks, the Houthis vowed a swift response and promised to meet “escalation with escalation,” according to Houthi-run Al Masirah TV.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated in an interview that Israel was only beginning its campaign against the Houthis. Netanyahu’s position at home has been bolstered by the Israeli military’s actions against Hezbollah in Lebanon and its destruction of Syrian army weapons.

Raiman al-Hamdani, a Yemeni researcher at the ARK international development group, noted that the attacks on the airport represented a significant escalation. He cautioned that the Houthis were “playing with fire” by doubling down on their attacks on Israel and that Yemen did not have the capacity to handle a major conflict involving Israel.

Last week, Israeli jets bombed Sanaa and Hodeidah, resulting in nine deaths. The United States military has also recently conducted strikes targeting Houthi positions in Yemen.

Israel’s latest strikes come after several days of Houthi launches setting off air raid sirens in Israel. The Houthis have also been targeting shipping in the Red Sea corridor, claiming it is in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

The ongoing conflict in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of more than 45,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. More than half of the casualties are reportedly children and women.