WHO chief stranded after Israeli strike in Yemen

World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Ghebreyesus has said that he was just “meters” away when Israel struck an airport in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, on Thursday. While Ghebreyesus and his team were unharmed, they were forced to delay departure due to the damage to the runway. 

A delegation led by Ghebreyesus visited the war-torn Arab country to negotiate the release of UN staffers, at least 17 of whom are believed to be held by the Houthi rebels, as well as to assess the health and humanitarian situation on the ground. 

According to Ghebreyesus, Sanaa International Airport came under Israeli strikes when his team was about to board the plane. 

“One of our plane’s crew members was injured. At least two people were reported killed at the airport,” he said in a statement. 

“The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge – just a few meters from where we were – and the runway were damaged. We will need to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired before we can leave.” 

“My UN and WHO colleagues and I are safe,” he said.

The strikes were also reported in the Red Sea port town of Ras Issa, to the west of Sanaa. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its jets targeted the Houthi “military infrastructure” at the airport, as well as power stations and sites in Yemen’s western seaports. The transport hubs were used by the Houthis to smuggle in Iranian weapons, the IDF said.

“The Houthi terrorist regime is a central part of the Iranian axis of terror, and their attacks on international shipping vessels and routes continue to destabilize the region and the wider world,” the Israeli military said in a statement. 

The Houthis have vowed to continue attacks on Israel until the IDF stops its operation against Hamas in Gaza. The rebel group sent a missile and at least two drones into Israel on Wednesday. Over the weekend, 16 people were injured when a Houthi missile hit a playground in Tel Aviv.