logo
Sanaa airport 'disabled' after Israeli strikes on Yemen

Sanaa airport 'disabled' after Israeli strikes on Yemen

Yemen Online07-05-2025
All flights to and from Sanaa airport in Yemen have been suspended due to damage inflicted by Israeli air strikes.
The airport's general director Khaled Al Shaief said in a post on X early on Wednesday that the Israeli strikes on had caused 'extensive damage'.
The strikes involved 50 bombs, 'dozens' of aircraft and mid-air refuelling, the Israeli military said. "Fighter jets struck and dismantled Houthi terrorist infrastructure at the main airport in Sanaa, fully disabling the airport," it added.
The operation came just hours before US President Donald Trump and mediator Oman announced a truce between Yemen's Houthi rebels and Washington, which has been carrying out its own intensive bombing campaign in Yemen in recent weeks.
The US had been targeting Houthi assets in an attempt to stop the Iran-backed group attacking international shipping in the Red Sea, which the Houthis say they have been doing in solidarity with Palestinians over the war in Gaza.
Israel's strikes on Tuesday came in response to a missile fired by the Houthis on Sunday that landed near Israel's main international airport, Ben Gurion, outside Tel Aviv. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had vowed to fight back.
Ceasefire deal
Oman, meanwhile, said the ceasefire agreement between the US and the Houthis would ensure 'freedom of navigation' in the Red Sea.
Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi said: 'Following recent discussions and contacts … with the aim of de-escalation, efforts have resulted in a ceasefire agreement between the two sides.
'Neither side will target the other … ensuring freedom of navigation and the smooth flow of international commercial shipping.'
Mr Trump said the Houthis had 'capitulated', adding: 'The Houthis have announced ... that they don't want to fight any more. They just don't want to fight. And we will honour that, and we will stop the bombings.
'They say they will not be blowing up ships any more, and that's ... the purpose of what we were doing.'
The Houthis did not directly comment on the truce but Mahdi Al Mashat, head of their supreme political council, said in a statement carried by the rebel-controlled Saba news agency early on Wednesday that 'continued escalation' would affect a visit by Mr Trump to the Middle East scheduled for next week.
'We indirectly informed the Americans that the continued escalation will affect the criminal Trump's visit to the region, and we have not informed them of anything else,' he said. Mr Trump is due to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.
Mr Al Mashat, however, promised a 'painful' response to the Israeli strikes. He said Houthi attacks on Israel 'will continue' and go 'beyond what the Israeli enemy can withstand'.
Video of the Israeli strikes on Sanaa airport aired by the Houthis' Al Masirah satellite news channel showed the terminal's windows blown out, with concrete blocks exposed and a fire burning inside. On the runway, aircraft associated with the state carrier Yemenia burned.
Other Israeli strikes elsewhere in Yemen hit a cement plant and power plants, the Houthis and Israelis both said.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the strikes should be seen as a warning to the 'head of the Iranian octopus', which he said bears direct responsibility for attacks by the Houthis against Israel.
Hans Grundberg, the UN's special envoy for Yemen, called the attacks in Yemen and Israel 'a grave escalation in an already fragile and volatile regional context'.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

UAE welcomes Emmanuel Macron's move to recognise Palestine as a state
UAE welcomes Emmanuel Macron's move to recognise Palestine as a state

Yemen Online

timean hour ago

  • Yemen Online

UAE welcomes Emmanuel Macron's move to recognise Palestine as a state

Sheikh Abdullah welcomes Emmanuel Macron's move to recognise Palestine as a stateSheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, has welcomed the declaration by French President Emmanuel Macron that France will recognise Palestine as a state. Mr Macron announced on Thursday night that France would join Norway, Ireland and Spain as countries in Europe that have recognised Palestine. His comments came as anger mounted over the death toll in Gaza and the growing number of people starving in the enclave. Sheikh Abdullah said the UAE appreciated "this important decision" by Mr Macron, state news agency Wam reported on Friday evening. The move by the French President came at "a pivotal moment that requires the international community to shoulder its responsibilities and work collectively to activate the political process and end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict", added Sheikh Abdullah. The French stance will contribute to enhancing security and stability in the region, while supporting the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, he said. Sheikh Abdullah reiterated the UAE's commitment to work with regional and international partners to find a just solution to the conflict in Gaza, ensuring a stable and prosperous future for the region in the process. Mr Macron said he would formalise the decision at the UN General Assembly in September. "The urgent priority today is to end the war in Gaza and rescue the civilian population," Mr Macron wrote. "We must finally build the state of Palestine, ensure its viability and enable it, by accepting its demilitarisation and fully recognising Israel, to contribute to the security of all in the Middle East." The decision to recognise Palestine as a state was also welcomed by Mohammed Ahmed Al Yammahi, President of the Arab Parliament. This move embodies a commitment to the values of justice, freedom and human dignity, and represents support for the Palestinian people's legitimate right to establish an independent and sovereign state, Wam reported Mr Al Yammahi as saying. The stance, added Mr Al Yammahi, strengthens diplomatic and parliamentary efforts aimed at achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East based on the two-state solution.

Yemen Protests against Iranian Meddling before Security Council
Yemen Protests against Iranian Meddling before Security Council

Yemen Online

time6 hours ago

  • Yemen Online

Yemen Protests against Iranian Meddling before Security Council

Yemen protested on Thursday against Iran's ongoing flagrant meddling in its internal affairs, as well as its destabilization of its security and stability. Yemeni Foreign Minister Shayea al-Zandani sent a letter to Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, current President of the United Nations Security Council and Pakistan's permanent Ambassador to the organization, about Yemen's recent seizure of an Iranian weapons shipment to the Houthi militants this month. Zandani said the shipment was seized at sea and inspections by military experts found that the arms were made by Iran. The incident was the latest in a series of seizures by Yemeni authorities, he added. It demonstrates the Iranian regime's continued interference in Yemeni affairs and blatant violations of the UN Charter, international law and Security Council resolutions. The shipment weighed around 750 tons and held weapons, ammunition and military gear, including Iranian-made Type 358 anti-aircraft missiles, drone components and warheads. In his letter, Zandani said Iranian meddling has allowed the Houthi militias to continue their war against the Yemeni people and carry out attacks against cities and villages, claiming civilian lives. The Houthis have carried out terrorist operations against civilian infrastructure and oil and energy facilities throughout the country, he added. He also noted their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea. The continued smuggling of Iranian weapons to the Houthis and Tehran's offering of military, financial and technical support demonstrates the extent of the direct Iranian interference in Yemen, he remarked. Iran's backing of the Houthis is part of its expansionist and destabilizing agenda in the region, he warned. Moreover, Zandani said the weapons shipment shows that Iran is keen on prolonging the conflict in Yemen, hampering efforts to reach a comprehensive political settlement and end the suffering of the people, and keeping Yemen as a platform to threaten international shipping.

IDF shoots dow missile lunched from Yemen
IDF shoots dow missile lunched from Yemen

Yemen Online

time6 hours ago

  • Yemen Online

IDF shoots dow missile lunched from Yemen

A ballistic missile launched at Israel Friday night by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was intercepted by air defenses, the Israel Defense Forces said. There were no reports of impacts or injuries in the attack, which triggered sirens in several settlements in the southern West Bank and communities near the Dead Sea in southern Israel. The Houthis took responsibility for the attack, claiming to have aimed at a 'sensitive target' in the Beersheba area, dozens of kilometers away from where sirens sounded. A ballistic missile launched at Israel Friday night by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was intercepted by air defenses, the Israel Defense Forces said. There were no reports of impacts or injuries in the attack, which triggered sirens in several settlements in the southern West Bank and communities near the Dead Sea in southern Israel. The Houthis took responsibility for the attack, claiming to have aimed at a 'sensitive target' in the Beersheba area, dozens of kilometers away from where sirens sounded. It was the second ballistic missile the Houthis launched at Israel in the past three days, after a missile fired on Wednesday night fell short outside the country's borders, according to military officials. The IDF identified that launch, but no sirens sounded in Israel because the missile did not pose a threat.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store