Over the weekend a Houthi ballistic missile struck Israel near Tel Aviv airport. Since then, numerous airlines have suspended service. Both Delta and United are currently suspended until May 11th (American Airlines never resumed service after the October 7 attacks). European carriers like Lufthansa are similarly suspended.
Smoke rises from near Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel-Aviv, after the ballistic missile fired by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, or shrapnel from the missile, impacted in Central Israel. pic.twitter.com/iuSbqqE6jh
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 4, 2025
In response, Israel carried out a series of airstrikes targeting Sanaa International Airport in Yemen, which is in Houthi-controlled territory. Israel issued a warning to all in the area prior to the attack, announcing that it was coming, in order to minimize any civilian casualties.
This airport has consistently gone out of service over the past decade. The Saudi air force bombed the terminal and only runway in 2015 and forced the closure of airspace in the area in 2016. The next year Houthis shot a missile into Saudi Arabia, and the Saudis responded by focing closure of the airport and then bombing the facility. The Saudis again performed air strikes on the airport in 2021.
There were no commercial flights at the airport from mid-April 2016 through mid-May 2022. At the end of 2024, Israel struck the airport in response to Houthi attacks on civilians in Israel.
Today the Israel Defense Forces struck the airport, targeting three civilian aircraft, the departures hall, runways, and a Houthi military base. They also targeted infrastructure throughout the Yemeni capital. Yemenia Airways reported that three of its aircraft were destroyed.
Footage showing today’s strikes against Sana’a International Airport in Houthi-controlled Western Yemen by the Israeli Air Force. pic.twitter.com/6IqIlZoEKa
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 6, 2025
Additional footage of the Israeli strikes this morning against Sana’a International Airport in Houthi-controlled Western Yemen. pic.twitter.com/akXhXS2KrX
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 6, 2025
The Houthis initially responded by promising ongoing resistance and declaring that Yemeni support for Palestine would continue until the end of hostilities against Gaza. However, Donald Trump announced that American military strikes under Operation Rough Rider against Houthi forces would halt immediately because of Houthi “capitulation,” as the Houthis communicated their intention to cease attacks against commercial and naval shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
That announcement will disappoint Israel, which prefers to destroy Houthi military capabilities to ensure security from ongoing missile threats.
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