According to the Israeli military, airstrikes in Yemen on Thursday targeted Israel Houthi rebelheld capital Sanaa and the port city of Hodeida. The World Health Organization’s director-general said the bombing occurred as he was boarding a flight in Sanaa, injuring one crew member. The Israeli army later told the Associated Press it was not aware the WHO chief was there.
“The air traffic control tower, the departure hall – just a few meters from our location – and the runway were damaged,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus from WHO said on Xand added that he and his colleagues were safe. “We have to wait until the damage to the airport is repaired before we can leave.” He did not mention the source of the bombing.
Tedros said at least two people were killed in the attack at the airport. Accordingly BBC NewsA video from inside the airport shows people running out of the terminal in panic.
Khaled Abdullah / REUTERS
The latest attacks came a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that “the Houthis will also learn what Hamas, Hezbollah, Assad’s regime and others have learned.” Netanyahu monitored the new attacks along with military leaders, his government said.
The Israel Defense Forces said the targets included “military infrastructure used by the Houthi terror regime for its military activities at both Sanaa International Airport and the Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power plants,” as well as other military infrastructure at several ports.
Iran-backed Houthi media confirmed the attacks in a Telegram post but gave no immediate details. Houthi media said three people were killed and 14 injured in the attacks.
The US military has also targeted the Houthis in Yemen in recent days.
The United Nations has noted that the ports are important access points for humanitarian assistance. According to BBC News, Tedros was in Yemen to negotiate the release of detained UN staff and assess the humanitarian situation.
Over the weekend, 16 people were injured when a Houthi rocket hit a playground in Tel Aviv. Last week, Israeli warplanes attacked Sanaa and Hodeida, killing nine people. This is a response to previous Houthi attacks. The Houthis have also targeted shipping in the Red Sea corridor, calling them solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
Israeli attack in front of hospital in Gaza
Meanwhile, an Israeli attack overnight killed five Palestinians outside a hospital in the Gaza Strip, the territory’s health ministry said. Gaza officials said they were journalists working for a local news agency. The Israeli military said they were militants posing as reporters.
The attack hit a car in front of Al-Awda Hospital in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. The Palestinian Journalists Union said the victims worked for local news agency Al-Quds Today, a television channel linked to the militant group Islamic Jihad. Reuters reported.
Ramadan Abed / REUTERS
Islamic Jihad is a smaller and more extreme ally of Hamas and took part in the October 7, 2023 attack in southern Israel that sparked the war. The Israeli military identified four of the men as combat propagandists and said intelligence, including a list of Islamic Jihad militants found by soldiers in Gaza, had confirmed that all five were linked to the group.
Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian militant groups engage in political, media and charitable operations in addition to their armed wings.
Associated press footage showed the burnt shell of a van with press marks visible on the rear doors. Weeping young men attended the funeral outside the hospital. The bodies were wrapped in shrouds and blue press vests were draped over them.
The Committee to Protect Journalists says more than 130 Palestinian reporters have been killed since the war began. Israel has not allowed foreign reporters to enter Gaza except in military camps.
Israel has banned the pan-Arab network Al Jazeera and accused six of its Gaza reporters of being militants. The Qatar-based broadcaster denies the allegations and accuses Israel of trying to silence its war coverage, which focuses heavily on civilian casualties in Israeli military operations.
Separately, the Israeli military said a 35-year-old reserve soldier was killed in fighting in the central Gaza Strip early Thursday. A total of 389 soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ground operation began more than a year ago.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed across the border and attacked nearby army bases, farming communities and a music festival. They killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped about 250. About 100 hostages are still in the Gaza Strip, and at least a third are believed to be dead.
According to the Ministry of Health, more than 45,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s air and ground offensive in the Gaza Strip. The offensive has caused widespread destruction and forced around 90% of the 2.3 million residents from their homes. Hundreds of thousands are crammed into squalid tent camps along the coast little protection from the cold, wet winter.
On Thursday, people mourned eight Palestinians killed in Israeli military operations in and around the occupied city of Tulkarem West Bank on Tuesday, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The Israeli military said troops opened fire after militants attacked soldiers and said it knew innocent civilians were injured in the attack.
