WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus escapes unhurt as Israeli airstrikes hit Yemen airport

Ghebreyesus confirmed the development on his X page when he wrote: "Our mission to negotiate the release of @UN staff detainees and to assess the health and humanitarian situation in #Yemen concluded today. We continue to call for the detainees' immediate release."

He said he was present at the airport to board a flight.

"As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport came under aerial bombardment," he said.

"One of our plane’s crew members was injured. At least two people were reported killed at the airport. The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged," the WHO chief said.

According to CNN, the strike at Sanaa International Airport left at least three people dead and 30 others injured.

The Israeli Defense Forces on Thursday said its fighter jets conducted intelligence-based strikes on military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime on the western coast and inland Yemen.

"The Houthi terrorist regime has repeatedly attacked the State of Israel and its citizens, including in UAV and surface-to-surface missile attacks on Israeli territory," IDF posted on X.

The defence forces said the targets that the IDF struck include military infrastructure used by the Houthi terrorist regime for its military activities in both the Sana’a International Airport and the Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power stations.

The IDF said: "In addition, the IDF struck military infrastructure in the Al-Hudaydah, Salif and Ras Kanatib ports on the western coast."

Meanwhile, The Times of Israel reported quoting Houthi-controlled Saba news agency that six people were killed in the strikes — three at the airport and three in Hodeida — while 40 others were wounded in the attacks.

Hezam al-Asad, a member of the Houthi political council, threatened Israel and wrote on X: "The Israeli attacks on some power stations and facilities at the airport and port reflect the state of weakness and bankruptcy that afflicts this defeated entity."

"Our operations continue to destroy the dens of the occupying Zionist enemy in its strategic depth in the Greater Jaffa area 'Gush Dan' and various areas until it stops killing our children in Gaza," he said.

Gus Dan is a metropolitan area located in Israel.

The UN Secretary-General on Thursday condemned the deadly escalation between Yemen and Israel, following Israeli airstrikes that struck critical civilian infrastructure in the country.

The strikes targeted Sana’a International Airport, Red Sea ports, and power stations, injuring also a member of the UN Humanitarian Air Crew at the airport.

“Today’s airstrikes follow around a year of escalatory actions by the Houthis in the Red Sea and the region that threaten civilians, regional stability and freedom of maritime navigation,” Stéphanie Tremblay, a UN spokesperson, said in a statement.

She added that Secretary-General António Guterres remains deeply concerned about the risk of further escalation and has urged all parties to cease military actions and exercise restraint.

“He also warns that airstrikes on Red Sea ports and Sana’a airport pose grave risks to humanitarian operations at a time when millions of people are in need of life-saving assistance,” Tremblay said.