Iranian Passenger Plane Caught Amid Saudi Assault on Sanaa Airport

An Iranian passenger flight, which had previously landed at Sanaa on July 4 carrying more than 200 Yemeni patients and stranded travellers, became the focus of a new Saudi air operation on Monday. The aircraft was on its way back to Tehran with a senior Houthi delegation attending the funeral rites of Iran’s late supreme leader.

During the plane's approach, Saudi jets allegedly struck the airport runway, prompting the Houthi media outlet to label the act as a deliberate attack on the Iranian aircraft.

Yemeni military officials urged civilians to vacate the airport zone, warning of potential collateral damage. No official Saudi statement or damage report has been released yet.

The event escalated tensions after the Houthi group previously announced that its air‑defence systems had intercepted Saudi fighter jets attempting to block the Iranian plane’s landing.