Houthis vow response as Israeli strikes on airport cause $500m damage
Israeli strikes on Yemen's Sanaa airport caused $500 million in damage and destroyed terminal buildings, its director told Houthi media on Wednesday, as the Iran-backed group vowed to respond.
The strikes on the Houthi-controlled airport came after the Iran-backed group launched a missile that struck near Israel's Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday.
'Around $500 million in losses were caused by the Israeli aggression on Sanaa airport,' its general director Khaled Al Shaief told Al Masirah television. 'The enemy destroyed the terminals at Sanaa airport, including all equipment and devices.' A warehouse was also 'completely levelled', he added.
Yemenia Airways lost three planes, he said, with six planes in total destroyed.
'There are alternatives to temporarily reopen the airport, and we need a long time to rehabilitate it and restore operations,' he said.
The airport had reopened to international flights after a six-year gap in 2022, with regular flights to Jordan's capital Amman. Yemenis in need of emergency medical treatment abroad have been among those relying on the airport.
Houthi health ministry spokesman Anees Alasbahi told AFP the attack will 'increase human suffering for sick people who need to travel abroad for treatment' and would make it more difficult to bring medical supplies into the war-battered country.
Video of the Israeli strikes aired by Al Masirah showed the terminal's windows blown out, with concrete blocks exposed and a fire burning inside. On the runway, Yemenia planes burnt.
Other Israeli strikes elsewhere in Yemen hit a cement plant and power plants, the Houthis and Israelis both said.
The US on Tuesday announced it would end a bombing campaign that had significantly intensified since mid-March, with the Houthis also agreeing to stop attacking ships to ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea. The truce was mediated and confirmed by Oman.
But that deal did not mention Israel, with the rebels vowing to respond to Tuesday's strikes.
'The agreement does not include Israel in any way, shape or form,' Mohammed Abdulsalam, the chief Houthi negotiator, told Reuters. 'As long as they announced the cessation [of US strikes] and they are actually committed to that, our position was self-defence so we will stop.'
An Israeli official and a US official separately confirmed to AP that the Trump administration did not inform Jerusalem of the deal with the Houthis ahead of time. Israel reportedly found out about the truce when US President Donald Trump announced it during his meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
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