Houthis accuse Saudi Arabia of bombing Sanaa airport, vow retaliation

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Yemen’s Houthi movement, which controls the country’s north, on July 13 accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out airstrikes on Sanaa International Airport and vowed to retaliate, Reuters reported. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree described the strikes as “blatant aggression” and said they marked the end of a period of reduced tensions in the long-running conflict. He said Saudi Arabia would face the consequences and that the attack would not go unanswered. Saudi Arabia has not responded to the accusations. Earlier on July 13, the Defence Ministry of Yemen’s internationally recognised government, based in the country’s south, said its forces had targeted the runway of Sanaa International Airport to prevent an Iranian aircraft from landing. Yemen has been engulfed in civil war for more than a decade. The Houthis seized the capital, forcing the internationally recognised government to relocate to the south. The government, based in the southern port city of Aden, is backed by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states. The government’s defence minister said diplomatic efforts to persuade Iran and the Houthis to stop what he described as violations of Yemeni airspace by Iranian aircraft had been exhausted. He added that government forces would respond “by all available means” to any hostile aircraft violating Yemen’s airspace. Meanwhile, Information Minister Muammar bin Mutahar Al-Eryani said the Houthis had seized an aircraft belonging to the International Committee of the Red Cross at Sanaa airport and detained its pilots.

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