WHO Chief Survives, Others Killed in Israeli Strike on Yemen Airport

In a recent series of Israeli military actions across the Middle East, Israeli warplanes targeted several locations in Yemen on Thursday, including the Sanaa International Airport. This assault resulted in multiple casualties and posed a direct threat to a high-ranking United Nations official.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), was at the airport alongside his team, concluding a visit aimed at “negotiating the release of U.N. staff held captive and evaluating the health and humanitarian conditions in Yemen,” according to his statements on social media. He reiterated calls for the immediate release of the detainees.

“Just as we were about to depart from Sanaa, the airport was struck by an airstrike about two hours ago. A member of our aircraft’s crew was injured,” Tedros reported, acknowledging the fatalities that occurred. “The air traffic control tower, the departure area—mere meters from our location—and the runway sustained damage. We must now wait for the airport repairs before we can depart. Myself, along with my U.N. and WHO colleagues, are safe. We extend our deepest sympathies to the families who lost loved ones in this tragedy.”

According toThe New York Times: “At least four individuals died and 21 were injured in Thursday’s strikes on the Sanaa international airport and the city of al Hodeida, reported Yemen’s Health Ministry via the Saba state news agency. These reports have not been independently confirmed.”

Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), informed the Times that the IDF was unaware of the WHO chief’s presence at the airport during the bombardment. “We had no prior knowledge,” he stated. “We wish him well.”

In a statement on social media, the IDF explained that “fighter jets carried out intelligence-led bombings” sanctioned by the Chief of the General Staff, Herzi Halevi, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“The operations targeted military infrastructure utilized by the Houthi terrorist regime for its military ventures at both the Sanaa International Airport and the Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power stations,” the IDF detailed. “Furthermore, military infrastructures in the ports of al Hodeida, Salif, and Ras Kanatib along the western coast were hit. These facilities have been instrumental for the Houthis in smuggling Iranian arms into the region and facilitating the entry of senior Iranian officials.”

Since the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, the heavily armed IDF has significantly escalated its operations not just in Gaza, leading to over 45,000 Palestinian deaths, but also against other Iran-affiliated groups, including the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel has also taken advantage of the recent collapse of the Syrian government under Bashar al-Assad, capturing more territory in Syria.

“The assault on Sanaa International Airport and other civilian infrastructure represents a Zionist crime against all Yemeni people,” stated Mohammed Abdulsalam, a Houthi spokesperson. “If the Zionist enemy believes that its atrocities will deter Yemen’s support for Gaza, they are mistaken.”

The attacks on Yemen occurred just a day after Netanyahu declared that “the Houthis, along with Hamas, Hezbollah, the Assad regime, and others, will eventually grasp the lesson being taught, even if it takes time, and this lesson will be understood throughout the Middle East.”

The ongoing devastation in Gaza has prompted genocide charges at the International Court of Justice, along with International Criminal Court arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, as well as a leader from Hamas.