Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Official Web Site
NEW YORK (Saba)
The Government has called on the UN Security Council to condemn in the strongest terms the Houthi terrorist attack on Aden International Airport, to hold its perpetrators accountable, and to ensure the full and effective implementation of the arms embargo imposed on the militia.
The call came in a letter from Yemen’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Abdullah Al-Saadi, to the President of the Security Council for October, Ambassador Aglaia Balta, Permanent Representative of Greece, and to UN Secretary-General António Guterres. In the letter, he briefed the Council on the details of the attack and the grave danger it poses to the safety of regional and international civil aviation.
The letter stated that the terrorist Houthi militia targeted the airport at dawn on Wednesday, 7 October, with two ballistic missiles and explosive-laden drones. The attack came as a civilian flight was approaching to land and while aircraft, passengers and staff were at the airport. It put their lives in direct danger and threatened the safety of air navigation at a civilian airport that serves Yemenis from all governorates.
The Government stressed that the attack constitutes a serious escalation and a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and international rules for the protection of civil aviation. It is also a continuation of the militia’s pattern of targeting civilian facilities, including the attack on Aden airport upon the Government’s arrival in December 2020, attacks on Saudi airports, the disruption of flights through Sana’a airport, and the detention of aircraft belonging to Yemenia, the national carrier.
The Government recalled its letter to the Council of 29 September, which warned of the threat to international civil aviation in the airspace of the southern Red Sea from the militia’s use of Iranian-origin capabilities and weapons. It stressed that the attack on Aden airport shows the threat has shifted from a potential risk to international air routes to a direct attack on a civilian facility. It also confirms the interconnected nature of Houthi threats to air and maritime navigation and regional security.
The Government called for preventing weapons, materiel, components, technology and military expertise from reaching the militia, in implementation of Security Council resolutions, foremost among them resolution 2216 (2015). It warned that the continued flow of such capabilities undermines the protection of international air and maritime navigation and increases the risk of incidents with serious humanitarian consequences and material damage.
It also called for stronger international cooperation with Yemeni institutions to protect airports, civilian facilities and air routes. It affirmed its readiness to cooperate with the United Nations, the Security Council, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the Panel of Experts on Yemen, and to share information and evidence to assess risks and prevent further attacks.
The Government emphasized that confronting these threats requires addressing their root causes, foremost among them the continued control of parts of Yemen by an armed militia. It affirmed that ending the coup, restoring state institutions, disarming the militia, and supporting the Government in extending its authority and sovereignty over the entire national territory, including its airspace, coasts and ports, are essential to protecting civilians, safeguarding the security of Yemen and its neighbors, and ensuring the safety of international air and maritime navigation.