West Asia crisis LIVE: Yemen-based Houthis claim drone, missile attack at Tel Aviv airport
World News | The UN chief condemned the “escalation” in the region, whereas WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus later said he was about to board a plane at the airport.
Israel on Thursday (Dec 26) hit multiple targets linked to Yemen-based Houthi rebels, including a major assault on the international airport in the capital, Sana’a. The strikes left at least six people dead, as claimed by the Iran-backed militias. The UN chief condemned the “escalation” in the region, whereas World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus later said he was about to board a plane at the airport just before it came under Israeli fire.
“The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge – just a few meters from where we were – and the runway were damaged. We will need to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired before we can leave,” said the WHO chief. He added that a crew member on the plane was injured.
Earlier, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Thursday to “cut off this terrorist arm of Iran’s evil axis.” “We will persist in this until we complete the task,” he added. Israel has hinted it is going to shift its focus to Houthis after dealing massive blows to other Iranian proxies in the region, including Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
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Yemen-based Houthi rebels Friday (Dec 27) said they fired a missile at Israel's Ben Gurion airport. The attack comes a day after Israel raided Sanaa's international airport and other targets in rebel areas.
A Houthi statement said they also launched drones at Tel Aviv and a ship in the Arabian Sea, stating that Israeli "aggression will only increase the determination and resolve of the great Yemeni people to continue supporting the Palestinian people".
A Palestinian television channel has reported the death of five of its journalists in an Israeli airstrike in the central Gaza Strip.
According to the channel, the journalists were inside a Quds Today van parked outside al-Awda hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp. One of the journalists was reportedly awaiting the birth of his child at the hospital.
In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that the strike targeted "Islamic Jihad operatives posing as journalists" and added that measures were taken to minimise harm to civilians.
Damascus governor has said his nation doesn't fear Israel in a bold statement Friday during an interview with NPR. "We have no fear toward Israel… there exists a people who want coexistence," he said.
The governor of Damascus added the newly-installed government wants to have good relations with Israel.
“Israel may have felt fear,” he said. “So it advanced a little, bombed a little, etc.”
“We have no fear towards Israel, and our problem is not with Israel,” he said. “There exists a people who want coexistence. They want peace. They don’t want disputes.”
“We want peace, and we cannot be an opponent to Israel or an opponent to anyone,” he said..
Lebanese media has reported Israeli strikes on three targets in the Bekaa Valley region, close to the border with Syria.
An apparent Houthi attack temporarily halted arrivals at israel's Ben Gurion Airport Friday, with four flights from Europe told to wait and not near the airport, according to local media reports. The airport resumed its normal activities after some 30 minutes.