Israel launches new airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen, WHO chief says he was just meters away

A new round of Israeli airstrikes in Yemen on Thursday targeted the Houthi rebel-held capital Sanaa and the port city of Hodeidah, with the director-general of the World Health Organization saying the bombing took place near a plane in Sanaa, injuring people. crew member.

“The air traffic control tower, the flight deck – just a few meters from where we were – and the runway were damaged,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at X, adding that he and his WHO colleagues were safe.

“We will have to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired,” he said, without specifying the source of the bombing.

The Israeli strikes came days after the Houthis activated their sirens in Israel. The Israeli army said that it attacked the infrastructure used by the Houthis at the Sana’a international airport, as well as the ports of Hodeidah, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib, and power plants.

Israel’s military did not immediately respond to questions about Tedros’ post, but issued a statement saying it was “capable of delivering strikes — far from Israeli territory — with precision, force and repetition.”

The strikes were carried out a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “The Houthis will learn what Hamas, Hezbollah, the Assad regime and others have learned.”

His government said Netanyahu had watched the new strikes with military leaders. The Iran-backed Houthi media outlet confirmed the strikes in a Telegram post, but did not immediately provide details.

The US military has also targeted the Houthis in Yemen in recent days. The United Nations has noted that ports are important access routes for humanitarian aid.

Over the weekend, 16 people were injured as a result of a rocket fired by the Houthis at a children’s playground in Tel Aviv. Last week, Israeli jets struck the towns of Sana’a and Hodeidah, killing nine people in what it called retaliation for earlier attacks by the Houthis.

The Houthis are also targeting shipping in the Red Sea corridor, calling it solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.

As a result of the Israeli attack, 5 journalists who reported that the IDF were militants were killed

Meanwhile, 5 Palestinian journalists were killed in front of the hospital in the Gaza Strip at night as a result of an Israeli air attack, according to the Ministry of Health of the territory. The Israeli military said that all five were militants posing as reporters.

The strike hit a car in front of al-Awda hospital in the Nuseyrat refugee camp in central Gaza. The journalists worked for the local TV channel “Al-Quds Today” affiliated with the “Islamic Jihad” armed group.

The Iranian-backed Islamic Jihad is a smaller and more extreme ally of Hamas and was involved in its October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.

The Israeli military identified four of the men as militant propagandists and said intelligence, including a list of Islamic Jihad operatives found by soldiers in Gaza, confirmed that all five were affiliated with the group.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and other Palestinian armed groups conduct political, media, and charitable operations in addition to their armed wings.

Associated Press footage shows the burned shell of the van with press marks visible on the rear doors. Sobbing young people attended the funeral in front of the hospital. The bodies were wrapped in shrouds and covered with blue printed vests.

Doctors said the five were among at least 21 people killed by Israeli airstrikes across the Palestinian enclave by dawn.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reports that more than 130 Palestinian journalists have been killed since the war began. Israel has not allowed foreign journalists to enter Gaza except for military deployments.

Israel regularly denies targeting journalists and says it takes steps to avoid hitting civilians.

Israel and Hamas blame trade for delaying ceasefire

On Wednesday, Hamas and Israel accused each other of failing to sign a ceasefire agreement, despite progress reported by both sides in recent days.

Although Hamas said Israel was proposing additional conditions, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the group of reneging on agreements already reached.

“The occupation imposed new conditions on the withdrawal, ceasefire, return of prisoners and displaced persons, delaying the current agreement,” Hamas said.

Netanyahu answered in his statement: “The terrorist organization Hamas continues to lie, renege on agreements that have already been reached, and continue to create difficulties in negotiations.”

More than 45,300 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza, according to health officials in the Hamas-run enclave. Most of the population of 2.3 million have been displaced and most of Gaza has been reduced to ruins.

The war began when Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages to Gaza, according to Israel.