Paris Soir - Israel pummels Yemen airport in reprisal against Huthis

Plumes of thick, black smoke were seen billowing from the airport area after a series of strikes shook the impoverished Arab country's capital.

Residents reported power outages in Sanaa and the Huthi-controlled port city of Hodeida, after the Israelis struck three electricity stations in and around the capital, according to the rebels.

Israel's military said it took the airport "fully" out of action after hitting runways and aircraft. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

A previous Israeli attack on the airport in December killed six people, according to Huthi media.

Israel has now launched two volleys of strikes after a Huthi missile penetrated the perimeter of Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion International Airport for the first time on Sunday, leaving a large crater and wounding six people.

Huthi authorities said that on Monday four people were killed and 35 wounded as Israel's initial reprisal strikes hit a cement factory and targets in Hodeida.

On Tuesday, the Israeli military said in a statement that its "fighter jets struck and dismantled Huthi terrorist infrastructure at the main airport in Sanaa, fully disabling the airport".

"Flight runways, aircraft and infrastructure at the airport were struck."

Israel targeted the airport because it "served as a central hub for the Huthi terrorist regime to transfer weapons and operatives", the statement said.

Just before Tuesday's attacks, Israel's military urged Yemeni civilians to "immediately" evacuate the airport and "stay away from the area".

"Failing to evacuate may put you at risk," military spokesman Avichay Adraee posted on X in Arabic.

- 'Grave escalation' -

The Huthis promised to hit back.

The "aggression will not pass without a response and Yemen will not be discouraged from its stance in support of Gaza", the Huthi political bureau said in a statement.

The Huthis have been attacking Israel and shipping in the Red Sea trade route since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, claiming solidarity with the Palestinians.

Yemen, much of it under Huthi control for more than a decade, has already been under sustained US attack since mid-March, when the US military began near-daily strikes after months of sporadic raids.

The latest exchanges come as regional tensions soar anew over Israel's plan to expand military operations in the Gaza Strip and displace much of the besieged territory's population.

The Huthis blamed both Israel and its ally the United States for the latest strikes. While Israel claimed responsibility, US officials have denied any involvement.

"US forces did not participate in the Israeli strikes on Yemen today," a US defence official told AFP on Tuesday.

As well as the airport and power stations, the latest raids also hit a cement factory in Amran, rebel media said.

They may not be the last. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said retaliation "will not happen in one bang, but there will be many bangs".

Hans Grundberg, the United Nations' special envoy for Yemen, called the exchange of strikes "a grave escalation in an already fragile and volatile regional context".

"I once again urge all stakeholders to exercise the utmost restraint and refrain from escalatory actions that risk inflicting further suffering on civilians," he posted on X.

Israel says it has targeted Yemen five times since July 2024, with Huthi authorities reporting a total of 29 people killed. Israel's army regularly intercepts missiles from Yemen.

Sanaa's airport, which reopened to international flights in 2022 after a six-year blockade by the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Huthis, offers a regular service to Jordan on the home-grown Yemenia airline.

P.Roux--PS