Days before the new US administration was about to refrain from
designating the Yemeni rebels as a “terror” group, Saudi Arabia said it foiled
a Yemeni Huthi drone attack at the Abha airport on Saturday, AFP reported. The airport
was targeted by the rebels on Wednesday when a drone strike left a civilian
aircraft ablaze. Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthis said that the airport, little more
than 100 kilometres (60 miles) from the border, is a legitimate target as it
has been used as a base for the coalition’s widely condemned bombing campaign
in Yemen.
Saudi air defences “intercepted and destroyed a drone rigged with
explosives which had been launched by the Huthis against Abha airport,”
the Saudi-led coalition fighting the rebels said in a statement quoted by state
television.
Also Read | Drone attack at Saudi airport leaves plane on fire, Huthi rebels claim responsibility
Saudi Arabia and its allies stated that the attacks amount to “war
crimes” as the airport is heavily used by Saudis enjoying the milder
climate of the mountains around Abha.
Wednesday’s drone attack came hot on the heels of US Secretary of State
Antony Blinken’s announcement that he would lift the terror designation of the
Huthis imposed by his predecessor Mike Pompeo. The designation had been widely
criticised by aid organisations, who warned it would hamper their efforts to
alleviate what the United Nations describes as the world’s worst humanitarian
crisis.
The Huthis still have control over the Yemeni capital Sanaa and much of the
north, and aid groups have little choice but to work with them.
Also Read | In first call with Saudi foreign minister, Antony Blinken calls for ‘elevating human rights’
Despite the attack, Blinken said the terror designation of the Huthi
movement would still be lifted as planned next Tuesday.
“The United States remains clear-eyed about Ansarullah’s malign
actions and aggression,” Blinken said, referring to the Huthi movement by
its formal name.
He said sanctions on individual Huthi leaders would remain in place.
