By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

“We express our strong condemnation of this terrorist crime and call on the United Nations and all relevant organizations to criminalize such acts that contradict international principles and laws.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) Chief, Tedros Ghebreyesus, was about to board his flight at the Sanaa International Airport on Thursday when Israeli airstrikes targeted the site.

Two airport employees were killed and the assistant to the UN plane’s captain was injured in the attack, according to the Ansarallah movement, affiliated with the Yemeni Armed Forces.

Our mission to negotiate the release of @UN staff detainees and to assess the health and humanitarian situation in #Yemen concluded today. We continue to call for the detainees' immediate release.

As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport… pic.twitter.com/riZayWHkvf

— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 26, 2024

“As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport came under aerial bombardment,” Ghebreyesus said on X, adding that “One of our plane’s crew members was injured.”

“The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged,” he said.

‘American Barbarism’

Ansarallah’s Foreign Minister, Jamal Amer, said the “timing of the airport strike” while the WHO Chief was preparing to leave was “disrespecting the United Nations, especially since the assistant captain of the UN plane was injured and taken to the hospital,” in addition to the two airport employees who were killed.

ان توقيت ضرب المطار فيما ممثل الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة الدكتور تيدروس والمنسق المقيم في صنعاء يستعدان للمغادرة يعد استهدافاً واستخفافا بالأمم المتحدة خاصة وقد اصيب مساعد كابتن الطائرة الأممية وتم نقله الى المستشفى
بالاضافة الى شهيدين من موظفي المطار ندعو لهما بالرحمة

— Gamal amerجمال عامر (@gamalmr49) December 26, 2024

“We express our strong condemnation of this terrorist crime and call on the United Nations and all relevant organizations to criminalize such acts that contradict international principles and laws,” stated Amer.

The latter, he continued, “become crippled and ineffective in the face of the tyranny of American barbarism led by” Biden and his “ally Israel.”

Israel also bombed the port of Hodeidah, with Yemeni media reporting that the death toll had risen to three along with 11 injuries.

Several Sites Targeted

The Ansarallah-affiliated Al-Masirah channel, cited by the Anadolu news agency, said fatalities in the attack on the airport had risen to three with 16 injuries, while the strike on Ras Isa oil port in Al-Hudaydah resulted in one death and three people went missing.

Anadolu also cited the Israeli public broadcaster KAN as saying that the airstrikes in Yemen targeted several strategic sites, including Sanaa airport and the port of Al-Hudaydah in western Yemen.

Israel Launches Major Offensive in Yemen – Strikes on Sanaa Airport, Hodeidah Port

Israel’s Channel 12 said power stations were targeted in the attacks, without providing further details.

According to Israeli Channel 13, dozens of Israeli fighter jets took part in the attacks, which coincided with a televised speech by Ansarallah leader Abdel-Malik al-Houthi.

US Notified

KAN said the US was notified before the launch of the attacks, Anadolu reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a warning on Wednesday, saying: “They will learn the same lessons as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Assad regime, and others, even if it takes time.”

Ansarallah has targeted Israel, as well as Israeli-linked shipping and naval vessels in the Red Sea, in solidarity with the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, where Israel’s ongoing genocidal operation has killed more than 45,000 people since October last year.

The US and UK have also been bombing targets in Yemen.

Staggering Death Toll

The ongoing Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, which began on October 7, 2023, has led to a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented scale. As the death toll among besieged and starved Palestinian civilians continues to rise daily, Israel is currently facing charges of genocide against Palestinians before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, at least 45,436 Palestinians have been killed, and 108,038 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023. The toll is expected to rise further, with at least 11,000 people still unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes across Gaza.

The Israeli army stormed the Kamal Adwan Hospital after besieging it and issuing evacuation orders. Hundreds of wounded, patients, doctors and nurses are in the hospital and their fate is unknown.

Contact was lost with medical and journalistic crews and the wounded inside Kamal… pic.twitter.com/zN75oC75UN

— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) December 27, 2024

The war, which Palestinians call “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood,” began after a military operation carried out by Hamas on Israeli territory. Israel reports that 1,200 of its soldiers and civilians were killed during the initial attack on October 7. However, Israeli media have raised concerns that a significant number of Israeli casualties were caused by ‘friendly fire’ during the assault.

Humanitarian Crisis

Human rights organizations, both Palestinian and international, have reported that the overwhelming majority of the casualties in Gaza are women and children. The ongoing violence has also exacerbated an acute famine, with thousands of children among the dead, highlighting the severity of the humanitarian disaster.

‘No Food, No Water’ – UNRWA Warns Besieged in Northern Gaza ‘Will Die of Hunger’

The war has displaced nearly two million people from their homes across Gaza, with the majority of the displaced forced into the already overcrowded southern region of the Strip. The population in Gaza remains trapped in the ongoing conflict, with little access to basic necessities such as food, water, and medical care.

(PC, Anadolu)