The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen accused Saudi Arabia of bombing Sanaa International Airport on Monday, while the internationally recognized Yemeni government said the strikes were conducted to prevent an Iranian plane from landing there.A Houthi official, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, said the rebels would retaliate for the strike that ended a period of what he called “de-escalation,” and he warned “this aggreession will not go unanswered or unpunished.”Prior to the strikes, Yemen’s defense minister, Gen. Taher al Aquili, said the runway was struck to stop the Iranian plane carrying a Houthi delegation returning from Iran after attending the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“At this moment, we say that our patience has run out,” al Aquili said. “Accordingly, we will respond appropriately to this treacherous and brutal act, and we will confront and deal with the hostile aircraft violating Yemeni airspace and sovereignty by all available means.”Hans Grundberg, the United Nations special envoy for Yemen, said he was following the situation and was “deeply concerned about the risk of wider escalation.”The plane, the Houthis said, was ultimately diverted to Hodeida Airport, where it landed.Hours later, Saudi Ministry of Defense Spokesperson Brigadier General Turki al Malki said, “Air defense forces intercepted a ballistic missile threat launched by the terrorist Houthi militia toward the southern region.”Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital in Sanaa and forced the established government into exile. A Saudi-led coalition intervened a year later to restore the government to power, though the coalition last targeted Houthi-controlled areas before a U.N.-brokered truce came into effect in 2022.Mohammed Abdulsalam, a Houthi spokesman, called the attack on Sanaa’s airport “a major breach of the 2022 truce.”TRUMP SAYS US WILL RESTART IRANIAN BLOCKADE AS MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING CRUMBLESThe incident comes as the conflict between the United States and Iran heats up again.President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the U.S. would resume its blockade of Iranian ports in the aftermath of ongoing tit-for-tat attacks between the two sides. The U.S. hit hundreds of targets in Iran over the last week or so, while Iran has targeted commercial vessels and carried out strikes targeting U.S. military bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Oman, and Qatar.