Tensions between the Iran-backed Houthis and the government in Yemen have reached their highest level since 2022 after an unauthorized Iranian aircraft entered the country. The Yemeni National Defense Council convened in Riyadh under the chairmanship of Presidential Leadership Council President Rashad al-Alimi. The meeting was attended by government members, the Parliament's Presidency Board, and senior officials.
The Council stressed that it would take 'all legitimate measures' against any new violation of the country's sovereignty. In a statement, while addressing Iran's 'repeated violations' of Yemen's sovereignty, it noted that 'no foreign aircraft will be allowed to land at or enter Yemeni airports without government approval.' The Council declared, 'The armed forces and security units will strike with an iron fist anyone who attempts to harm the state's sovereignty or impose a fait accompli.'
Security Alert Raised to Highest Level
Interior Minister Ibrahim Haydan ordered the security and operational readiness level to be raised to the maximum in all government-controlled governorates. Minister Haydan stated that Yemen is facing 'escalating terrorist threats orchestrated by Iran through the Houthis' and called for the highest level of vigilance against them.
Houthis Protest and Threaten Retaliation
The Houthis organized demonstrations in cities such as Sanaa, Marib, Dhamar, and Taiz to protest the bombing of Sanaa Airport. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree accused Saudi Arabia of being behind the airport attack and said the 'attack will not go unanswered.' Saree announced that the Houthis targeted Abha International Airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia with ballistic missiles and drones.
According to the Houthi-affiliated news agency, the unrecognized Houthi government's Deputy Foreign Minister Abdulwahid Abu Ras sent a letter to the United Nations Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council, holding 'the Saudi regime fully responsible for the consequences of the attack.'
Background of the Tensions
The Yemeni government had condemned the first Iranian plane to land at Sanaa Airport on July 3, stating that it was intended to 'transport a Houthi delegation to Tehran.' This was the first Iranian aircraft to land in Sanaa in nearly a decade. The Houthi channel Al-Masirah reported that the delegation was traveling to Iran to attend the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US-Israeli attack on February 28.
The tensions are escalating simultaneously with the renewed military conflict between the US and Iran and the risk of the mediation process collapsing. The Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy announced that air defense systems had been activated against the Houthi ballistic missile threat to the southern region, while the Houthis implied that retaliatory attacks would continue.
