Yemen: Houthis continue offensives, attack Saudi airport
A plane that was allegedly damaged in an attack by Yemeni Houthi rebels on Saudi Abha airport on February 10, 2021, according to Saudi authorities.
© Saudi Ministry of Media / AFP
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2 min
As a sign of the rekindled tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi rebels in Yemen, an airliner caught fire on Wednesday (February 10) at Abha airport in southern Saudi Arabia.
Without causing any casualties, the incident was immediately attributed to the Yemeni rebel group.
"A war crime," denounces the coalition led by Riyadh to fight against the Houthis.
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This Wednesday morning, the
Riyadh-led military coalition
announced that it had intercepted armed drones in southern Saudi Arabia.
These drones were aimed at Abha International Airport, according to the Houthi rebel movement.
The latter say they were targeting the parking areas of military planes, the Abha airport being used to launch
air operations
against their troops, according to the Yemeni rebels.
But according to Saudi authorities, the assault on Wednesday February 10 hit a civilian plane, which caught fire.
The coalition then denounces a “
cowardly terrorist attack
” and evokes “
a war crime
”.
Since the beginning of the week, several drone attacks have targeted this airport, and for the coalition, these "
endanger civilian passengers
".
On Tuesday, February 9, the Houthis said they were ready to stop these assaults, against the airport as well as
in Marib province, a loyalist stronghold in northern Yemen
.
But they were calling on Saudi Arabia to stop the attacks on them first.
If the message of the rebel movement said it was addressed to Riyadh, it was also aimed at Washington: the new American administration wants to favor a diplomatic solution to this conflict.
"
The war in Yemen must end
,"
Joe Biden said on February 4
.
►
Read also: Yemen: Houthi rebels launch a new offensive against the coalition in the north
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