Head of WHO claims to have been in Yemen airport during Israeli air strikes on Houthi targets - as crew member injured
26 December 2024, 16:22 | Updated: 26 December 2024, 16:48
The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu, says he was at a Yemeni airport when it was hit by Israeli air strikes.
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He claimed the airport came under attack as he was about to board a flight from Sana'a, Yemen's capital.
Ghebreyesu had been in the country to negotiate the release of UN staff detainees and assess the health and humanitarian situation in the country.
The director confirmed he was not injured - but one of the plane’s crew members was.
Israel says the targets belong to what it calls "Houthi terrorists" backed by Iran - and the strikes are a response to the group's repeated attacks on Israel.
Our mission to negotiate the release of @UN staff detainees and to assess the health and humanitarian situation in #Yemen concluded today. We continue to call for the detainees' immediate release.
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 26, 2024
As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport… pic.twitter.com/riZayWHkvf
In a tweet, he said: "As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport came under aerial bombardment.
"One of our plane’s crew members was injured.
"At least two people were reported killed at the airport.
"The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged."
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Houthi rebels in Yemen said Israeli air strikes have targeted the rebel-held capital of Sanaa and the port city of Hodeida following several days of Houthi launches setting off sirens in Israel.
The Israeli military said it attacked infrastructure used by the Houthis at the international airport in Sanaa and ports at Hodeida, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib along with power stations.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a speech on Wednesday that "the Houthis, too, will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad's regime and others learned".
Following the approval of operational plans by the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of Defense and the Prime Minister, IAF fighter jets conducted intelligence-based strikes on military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime on the western coast and inland Yemen… pic.twitter.com/GnjyZgZv4m
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) December 26, 2024
The Iran-backed Houthis' media outlet reported the strikes in a Telegram post but gave no immediate details.
The US military has also targeted the Houthis in Yemen in recent days. The United Nations has noted that the ports are important entry points for humanitarian aid.
Over the weekend, 16 people were wounded when a Houthi missile hit a playground in Tel Aviv.
Last week, Israeli jets struck Sanaa and Hodeida, killing nine people, calling it a response to previous Houthi attacks.
The Houthis have also been targeting shipping in the Red Sea corridor in what they have say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
