The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday that he narrowly escaped death during Israeli strikes on Thursday on the airport of the Yemeni capital, held by Houthi rebels.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the BBC that his ears were still ringing since the attack on Thursday, as he prepared to board a plane in Sanaa.
“The noise was so loud… so deafening, in fact. I still have ringing in my ears. It’s already been over 24 hours. I don’t know if it affected my ear,” he commented.
“The departure lounge next to us was hit, then the control tower,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “If the missile had deviated just a little bit, it could have landed on our heads.”
On Thursday, Israel announced that it had struck “military targets” of the Houthi rebels, including the Sanaa airport, with the army claiming to have responded to “repeated attacks” by these insurgents who have been launching numerous attacks against Israel for months, “in solidarity” with the Palestinians.
The Houthis, who control large parts of Yemen including the capital, are supported by Iran, Israel’s sworn enemy. The WHO chief said the protection of civilian installations provided for by international law must be respected. “It doesn’t matter if I was there or not… This is a civilian installation, it must be protected, in accordance with international law,” he insisted.
Tedros was visiting Yemen on behalf of UN chief Antonio Guterres as part of a mission to secure the release of detained UN staff and assess the health and humanitarian situation in the war-ravaged country. the war.
