Yemen’s Government Strikes Sanaa Airport Runway to Block Iranian Flight

Yemen’s internationally recognised government announced that its armed forces hit the runway of Sanaa International Airport on 13 July to prevent an Iranian Mahan Air aircraft from landing. The defence ministry said the strike was a response to a Houthi‑facilitated attempt to allow the Iranian plane – carrying a delegation returning from the late Ayatollah Khamenei’s funeral – to use the airport, which the government described as a breach of Yemeni sovereignty.

The Houthi rebel movement, backed by Iran, blamed Saudi Arabia for the attack and threatened retaliation, while also claiming to have detained an International Committee of the Red Cross aircraft at the same airport. Saudi officials later offered a limited lift of the siege, proposing flights only to Jordan’s Queen Alia Airport under Saudi‑controlled conditions. Yemen’s transport minister said work to rehabilitate both runways would begin immediately, and the UN and other international actors urged de‑escalation and respect for the July‑2024 truce.

The incident marks a sharp deterioration in the fragile cease‑fire that has held since 2022 and raises the risk of broader regional escalation involving Saudi Arabia, Iran and the Houthi forces.