Israel Destroys Yemen’s Sanaa Airport in Retaliation for Houthi Missile; Damage Estimated at $500 Million

Israel’s military said it carried out a wave of airstrikes on 6 May that “fully disabled” Sanaa International Airport, the main gateway to Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital. The operation began after the Israel Defense Forces issued an unprecedented evacuation warning to civilians in and around the airport, citing imminent danger. According to the IDF, Israeli fighter jets struck the airport’s terminal buildings, runway and aircraft, along with Houthi infrastructure at nearby power stations and the Al-Amran cement factory. Israeli media, citing military officials, reported that more than a dozen warplanes dropped roughly 50 precision-guided bombs, rendering the facility inoperable. Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV and airport director Khaled Al-Shaif confirmed extensive damage, saying six planes—including three operated by Yemenia—were destroyed and placing overall losses at about US$500 million. Local reports said the strikes also cut electricity to parts of the capital; information on casualties remained unclear. Israel described the raid as retaliation for a ballistic-missile strike two days earlier in which the Houthis said they targeted Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv. The attack on Sanaa’s airport, which followed Israeli strikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah port the previous night, underscores an accelerating exchange between Israel and the Iran-backed rebels amid widening regional tensions.