The head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, says he narrowly escaped death in Israel’s latest retaliatory attack on the airport of the Yemeni capital Sanaa.
“It was just a matter of luck,” Tedros told the BBC on Saturday. If the missile’s path had been slightly different, “the missile could have fallen on our heads,” he said.
On Thursday, the Israeli air force attacked the international airport near Sanaa while the head of the WHO was staying there. The shelling followed attacks on Israel by the Houthi militia, backed by Israel’s arch-enemy Iran. Last Saturday, sixteen people were injured in a Houthi rocket attack on Tel Aviv.
Video of the attack released
Tedros traveled to Yemen to demand the release of captured UN workers and to understand the humanitarian situation in the country.
The head of the WHO published a video of the Israeli attack on the online service X. He thanked his colleagues and airport staff who tried to protect him during the “very dangerous attack”.
Questions for Israel
Asked whether Israel knew he was at the airport at the time, Tedros said his organization’s flights were “internationally known.” “So I assume that the people who want to know know. It would be good to ask Israel this question.”
He also demanded that the protection of civilian facilities provided for by international law must be respected. As far as he knows, Sanaa airport is “a civilian airport.” “If there’s anything else, I haven’t seen it. But I know it was used for civilian flights at the time.”
“Axis of Resistance”
The Houthi militia controls large parts of Yemen’s civil war. Just like the militant Palestinian organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, they belong to the ‘Axis of the Resistance’ led by Iran and aimed against Israel.
Following the Israeli retaliatory attack, the militia said it attacked Tel Aviv again with drones on Friday. She also fired a missile at the airport there.
Since the start of the Gaza war, triggered by Hamas’s major attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, the Houthis have repeatedly fired rockets into Israel. Since then, the militia has also attacked ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden – according to its own statements “in solidarity” with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
