Yemen's Houthi militia, reportedly backed by Iran, has announced the commencement of direct flights between Sana'a and Tehran, aiming to revive a similar initiative from early 2015. The group stated that a high-level delegation of its leaders has arrived in Tehran to attend the funeral of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, having departed from Sana'a International Airport on Friday morning aboard an Iranian civilian aircraft.
According to a statement attributed to the militia's spokesperson, Yahya Saree, a Saudi warplane allegedly attempted to prevent the Iranian aircraft from landing at Sana'a Airport, which is under Houthi control. The militia claimed to have thwarted this attempt by deploying air defense missiles against the Saudi aircraft, forcing it to leave the airspace, as stated in their declaration.
While the Houthi militia reiterated its demand for an end to the blockade on Sana'a Airport, their statement also revealed what they termed an "Iranian initiative to break the siege." This initiative, they asserted, was facilitated by the recent flight, which transported alleged stranded citizens, the wounded, the sick, and the delegation attending Khamenei's funeral. The militia emphasized that flights between Sana'a and Tehran will continue to "break the siege... regardless of the results and repercussions."
The Houthi statement issued a warning to Saudi Arabia against any recurrence of attempts to block Iranian aircraft, stating that such actions would be met with a comprehensive response, including targeting Saudi airports and vital interests on land and sea. The militia also called for adherence to their leader's recent call for escalation, asserting readiness to execute directives aimed at dismantling the alleged Saudi-American blockade.
The militia's announcement of regular flights between Sana'a and Tehran and their threats regarding the continuation of these flights inevitably recall the air bridge established between the Houthi movement and Iran in 2015. This initiative followed the Houthi group's "constitutional declaration" in February 2015, which signaled their de facto seizure of state power. Later that month, a memorandum of understanding was reportedly signed in Tehran regarding air transport between Yemen's Civil Aviation and Meteorology Authority and Iran's Civil Aviation Organization.
Reports from that period indicated that these flights facilitated the movement of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and Hezbollah experts and leaders into Yemen, allegedly to solidify the Houthi coup. This air bridge is widely considered a significant factor that prompted the Saudi-led coalition to intervene militarily in Yemen in March 2015, leading to the suspension of the direct air link between Iran and its Yemeni proxies.
