Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen have again attacked Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia, dropping a bombs and damaging a civilian Airbus A320 aircraft.
Flyadeal Airbus A320 Targeted in Terrorist Attack in Saudi Arabia
The attack occurred last Wednesday via bomb-laden drones at Abha International Airport in southwest Saudi Arabia. There were no deaths or even injuries, but a Flyadeal Airbus A320 was severely damaged.
Flyadeal Airbus A320 (HZ-FAB, built 2017) was badly damaged while parked at Abha Airport (OEAB), Saudi Arabia. The airfield came under a drone attack, controlled by Houthi forces. @HavaSosyalMedya pic.twitter.com/JYkxnm59UV
— JACDEC (@JacdecNew) February 10, 2021
Saudi U.N. Ambassador Abdallah Al-Mouallimi noted:
“Such acts of terrorism by the Houthis continue to jeopardize the efforts of United Nations to reach a comprehensive political solution in Yemen.”
That’s quite diplomatic. I’ll be more blunt: such terrorism will not end well for innocent bystanders in Yemen, for no sovereign nation can accept such terrorist attacks on its own infrastructure.
Houthi rebels targeted a civilian aircraft with a clear point: you are not safe in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. What could be more chilling than to board a domestic flight in fear that a drone might drop a bomb on it?
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken responded by removing Yemen’s Houthi rebels from the U.S.’s list of foreign terrorist organizations. President Trump added the Houthi rebels, also known as Ansarallah, to the U.S. list of terrorist organizations on the day before he left office. Critics cried foul, noting that such a designation would worsen the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, leading to even more civilian starvation.
CONCLUSION
The proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran continues in Yemen. The drone attack last week at Abha International Airport, not to mention the number of civilian deaths in Yemen, illustrates the danger and tragedy of the struggle. Targeting a civilian aircraft is the essence of terrorism. Let us all hope for a last peace deal that fully disarms Houthi rebels.
image: @JacdecNew
They are not terrorists. The US govt. Does not list them as terrorists. And they have killed fewer Americans(zero) in execution of a terror attack than white Republican males
In other words it’s time white Republican males were designated as terrorists.
So they’re only terrorists if they kill Americans?
No silly, only if they kill white people, not just Americans.
Comments sponsored by MSNBC?
Seems even the NY Times still considers them terrorist but again it’s the NY Times so who knows if that is true. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/12/us/politics/houthi-terrorist-designation-yemen.html
NYT is fake news or real news? Y’all don’t get to pick and choose. Either NYT is fake news and they are not terrorists. If NYT is real news then they are terrorists.
That hole wasn’t caused by a drone attack from Houthi rebels. It was entirely my fault. Let’s just say it was my first time trying Yemeni food and it didn’t exactly agree with me.
I laughed at this a little bit harder than I should have.
If you think Matthew isn’t paid by under the table by Saudi princes you would be sadly mistaken.
Very perplexing why President Biden, with over 40 years of foreign policy experience, is so dumb or, maybe senile. He tried to jump start nuclear negotiations with Iran by unilaterally giving them a gift. Take off Houthis rebels, supplied by Iran, off the terrorist list.
Iran paid back the favor, not by offering a reciprocal kind gesture, but attacking the A320.
Does Biden have slight dementia? Did he forget? He should know that Iran only responds to toughness, not kindness.
Debit needs some credits in his gray matter.
Isn’t this kind of old news? Like last week?
Not condoning this incident by any means, but any flights to airports in southern Saudi Arabia such as Abha, Bisha and Gizan have been treated as operations into a war-zone for at least the last 5 years and require enhanced war-risk insurance, special permits, etc.. This is not the first attack on those airports and is unlikely to be the last either.
It’s a war. Should the Houthis just stand by while the Saudis bomb school buses and weddings? The Biden administration just reversed their designation as terrorists exactly because the Saudis have no right to wage the sort of unilateral war they’re waging on the Yemeni people.
Sorry, but they are trying to protect the Yemeni people from Iranian-backed terrorists. The Houthi rebels must be disarmed or destroyed. Hopefully they will disarm, because no one wins in a war.
Sorry, but they aren’t. It isn’t as cut and dry as that Matthew.
I realize that every conflict is not black and white, but shades of gray. But I’m still backing KSA and hoping for a lasting peace with a disarmament.
Matthew, I don’t think you’re fully aware of the context of this conflict. The Houthis aren’t terrorists in the same form of ISIL or Al-Qaeda, they’re not a direct danger to the US or the west. During the Arab Spring, there was a quasi-revolution in Yemen. The longtime dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh, transferred power to his VP, Hadi, in a KSA and UAE brokered deal. Hadi had the support of the KSA, UAE but wasn’t popular in Yemen. In 2015, the Yemeni army, still loyal to Saleh, and the Houthis joined forces to overthrow Hadi. The KSA and UAE didn’t like their man being overthrown and invaded. The Iranians didn’t really enter the fray until AFTER the Saudis invaded. Their help is also minimal, mainly small arms to cheaply bleed the Saudis dry, since they don’t have much in common with the Houthis. This conflict was an internal Yemeni war that the Saudis had no business in intervening, let alone blowing up school buses, hospitals and weddings for.
MBS has caused this. And after the Saudis supported terrorism in many countries for many years they deserve whatever is happening to them.
Needless to say the hideous tactics used by the Saudis in Yemen have also helped this happen.
Glad that the Islamic terrorism beast the Saudis created is now biting them in the behind.
@Matt: I think your opinion is swayed by Israel’s relationship with S, Arabia? you sound very Biased.
I’m very biased, but it is not because of Israel.
Please stop covering politics. I’m not interested in your political views, frankly reading such uneducated commentary pisses me off and makes me want to stay away from the blog.
I am however much more interested in your informative and enjoyable articles on travel. While I realize travel and politics can intersect at times, it seems clear that you went beyond that in this article.