An Iranian Airbus A340 used to transport senior Iranian officials was en route to Sanaa, Yemen
By Bernard Moerdler,
An Iranian Airbus A340 used to transport senior Iranian officials was en route to Sanaa, Yemen, as strikes hit the city's international airport, according to sources. The aircraft, which has recently carried Iranian officials to Pakistan and to Muscat for talks, remained airborne and is now beginning a landing toward the Houthi-controlled capital.
The Houthis said Saudi Arabia carried out the strikes to stop the aircraft from landing. "In a flagrant and brazen act of aggression, the criminal Saudi enemy has targeted Sanaa International Airport with a series of airstrikes, thereby ending the de-escalation phase and bearing the consequences of its aggression," a Houthi spokesman said, adding that "this aggression will not pass without response and punishment." The airport lies under a long-standing air blockade enforced by the Saudi-led coalition, which has continued to bar Iran from Yemeni airspace and which Houthi forces said tried to intercept an Iranian civilian flight near Sanaa earlier this month. Saudi authorities have not commented, and BNN was not able to independently verify who carried out the strikes.
The president of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council said he held "the Houthi militias and their backers responsible for the consequences of this escalation on Yemen's security and stability."
Topics: Iran, Strait of Hormuz, Yemen & Red Sea
Reported by Bernard Moerdler for Bernie News Network. See our editorial standards and corrections policy.