Yemen02 July, 20263 min read
Houthis Reopen Sanaa International Airport After Airstrikes Target Runways
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Sanaa International Airport's runways were struck, shutting the airport and disrupting flights. Government said it struck the runway to stop an Iranian plane; Houthis vowed retaliation.
Runway strikes and reopening
Houthis authorities affiliated with Ansar Allah announced on Wednesday the reopening of Sanaa International Airport and the resumption of its full readiness to receive flights, two days after it was subjected to airstrikes targeting its runways. The Yemeni News Agency (SABA) quoted Mohammed Qahem, the minister of transport and public works in the group’s internationally unrecognized government, as saying that repairs to damage from the raids have been completed and that the airport has returned to full air-navigation service. Qahem said the rehabilitation work included the takeoff and landing runways in accordance with approved technical specifications and was carried out under the supervision of engineering and technical teams from the General Organization for Roads and Bridges, with participation from staff of the General Authority of Civil Aviation and Meteorology in Sana’a.
He added that the technical teams began maintenance work immediately after the attacks and completed it in a short period, while the rehabilitation operations were overseen by the group’s leadership and the Supreme Political Council. The internationally recognized Yemeni government’s Ministry of Defense had announced two days earlier that the runway at Sanaa airport had been targeted to disrupt airport movement and prevent the landing of an Iranian plane bound for the Yemeni capital.
Competing claims and threats
Iran condemned the attack on Sana'a airport, with Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baqaei describing the strike as a clear violation of international law and the UN Charter, as well as an attack on Yemen's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Brig. Gen. Yahya Sari said the attack on Sana'a airport was a brazen and unjust aggression carried out by Saudi Arabia, adding that it effectively marks the end of the de-escalation phase and that Saudi Arabia must bear the consequences, stressing that the attack will not pass without a response or punishment.
The internationally recognized Yemeni government said on Monday that it targeted the runway at Sanaa International Airport to prevent an Iranian plane from landing, and a statement from the Yemeni Defense Ministry carried by Saba News Agency said the Iranian regime-backed terrorist militias prevented the Yemeni national airline from landing at the capital's airport.
In the same dispute, the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council said it was prepared to resume civilian flights via Yemenia, the legally authorized national carrier to operate flights to and from Sanaa Airport, but the Houthis rejected that.
Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesman, vowed to respond in an “unjust and flagrant aggression” and said, “We confirm that this aggression will not pass without a response and punishment.”
Air traffic and humanitarian risk
The Yemeni Civil Aviation Authority informed “all airlines and international organizations operating flights to and from the airports of the Republic of Yemen that all airports are closed until further notice, effective immediately,” and a circular from the Yemeni General Directorate of Civil Aviation ordered the closure of all airports until further notice. The Yemeni Ministry of Defense accused “the Houthi terrorist militias – backed by the Iranian regime” of having “insisted on allowing an Iranian plane to violate Yemeni airspace,” which it said would have motivated the strike on the runway. Air Journal said the closure of Sanaa airport, described as crucial for humanitarian flights and some diplomatic movements, deprives UN agencies and NGOs of a major air platform to deliver personnel and humanitarian cargo, increasing reliance on land corridors often precarious.
In the Houthis’ counterclaim, Al-Masirah said the bombardments targeted “the takeoff and landing runways,” making impossible, in the short term, any commercial or humanitarian operation from Sanaa. The Houthis also claimed an attack on Abha International Airport in southern Saudi Arabia using missiles and drones, while the Riyadh-led coalition said it intercepted several ballistic missiles fired from Yemen toward the south of the kingdom.