Israel raid disables Yemen airport

SANAA (AFP) — Israel’s attack on the airport in Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa destroyed terminal buildings and caused $500 million in damage, its director told Houthi media on Wednesday.

He said earlier in a statement on X that the airport was suspending all flights until further notice after sustaining “severe damage” in the Israeli strikes.

The strikes came after a Houthi missile gouged a crater near Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport on Sunday.

“The enemy destroyed the terminals at Sanaa airport, including all equipment and devices,” its general director Khaled alShaief told the rebels’ Al-Masirah television, adding that a warehouse was also “completely leveled.”

Yemenia Airways lost three planes, he said, adding that six planes in total had been destroyed.

“There are alternatives to temporarily reopen the airport, and we need a long time to rehabilitate it and restore operations,” he said.

On Tuesday, the Houthi rebels and the United States agreed a ceasefire that would ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, mediator Oman said.

But the deal that was announced does not mention Israel, with the rebels vowing to respond to Tuesday’s strikes.

Houthi rebels have been attacking Israel and merchant shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since late 2023, saying they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians as the Gaza war rages.

The Yemeni rebels had paused their attacks during a recent two-month ceasefire in the Gaza war.

In March, they threatened to resume attacks on shipping over Israel’s aid blockade on the Gaza Strip, triggering a response from the US military, which began hammering the rebels with near-daily air strikes.

They have capitulated

At the White House, Trump said the rebels had “capitulated” after a seven-week US bombing campaign that left 300 dead, according to an Agence France-Presse tally of Houthi figures.

“The Houthis have announced... that they don’t want to fight anymore. They just don’t want to fight,” Trump said.

“And we will honor that, and we will stop the bombings, and they have capitulated,” he added.

“They say they will not be blowing up ships anymore, and that’s... the purpose of what we were doing.”

The Pentagon said last week that US strikes had hit more than 1,000 targets in Yemen since mid-March.

Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdelsalam told the rebels’ Al-Masirah television channel that any US action would garner a response. “If the American enemy resumes its attacks, we will resume our strikes,” he said.

“The real guarantee for the accord is the dark experience that the United States has had in Yemen,” he added.