Yemen’s Aden Airport resumes operations after temporary suspension following Houthi strike

Yemen’s Aden International Airport resumed normal operations Thursday, a day after activity was temporarily suspended following a strike that Yemeni authorities said was carried out by the Houthi group.

Transport Minister Mohsen Haidara Al-Omari announced the resumption during a visit to the airport to oversee operations, according to a statement by the Transport Ministry’s media office.

“Airport activity returned to normal Thursday morning following the temporary suspension caused by the shelling carried out by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia on Wednesday,” Al-Omari said.

“Technical teams began urgent repair and maintenance work on the targeted runway shortly after the attack despite the risks involved,” he said.

He criticized the continued targeting of Aden International Airport, describing it as a civilian facility serving passengers from across Yemen.

On Wednesday, Yemeni authorities said two civilians were injured, and the airport suffered damage after it was targeted by two ballistic missiles they said were launched by the Houthis, prompting the suspension of airport operations.

The development comes amid a wider military escalation in Yemen that began in July, described as the most significant since the period of relative calm that followed a truce announced in April 2022.

Since Oct. 5, forces aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognized government have been carrying out the “Dawn of Yemen” military operation, which Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad Al-Alimi said aims to restore state institutions from the Houthis and retake the capital Sanaa.

Yemen has been mired in conflict since the Houthis seized Sanaa and several other provinces in 2014, before a Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.