Iranian flights to and from Yemen are an unacceptable violation of the country's sovereignty, according to Abdullah al-Alimi, vice-president in Yemen's Saudi-backed, UN-recognised government. In an interview, al-Alimi stated that the planes contained equipment for the Houthi movement, which he said had transformed from a domestic threat into a regional and international danger to global security and the economy.
Airport bombing and Houthi retaliation
The comments followed a Yemeni government airstrike, supported by Saudi Arabia, on the Houthi-controlled Sana'a airport. The strike protested Iranian efforts to send a plane carrying a Houthi delegation returning from the funeral of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The aircraft eventually landed at Hodeidah airport, a Houthi-controlled Red Sea port. In response, the Houthis fired missiles at Saudi Arabia, breaking a four-year truce in the conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned group.
The head of the Houthi national delegation defended the actions, stating: "Defending oneself, the homeland and the people is a religious, national, moral and humanitarian duty, and a legitimate right affirmed by Islamic law and international law. The aggressor is the real wrongdoer."
Yemen's civil war context
Yemen has been in a state of intermittent civil war since 2015, when the Houthis seized Sana'a, forcing the UN-recognised government to withdraw to Aden with Saudi support. Al-Alimi, a long-term political figure, said the Houthis are now in a weaker position than in years, partly due to the weakening of Iran, their longstanding supporter. He asserted: "It is realistic that we can end their coup and restore the state and its institutions, contribute to the security and stability of the region and the world, secure the waterways and protect the global economy."
Allegations of Iranian equipment transfers
Al-Alimi accused Iran of using the funeral as cover to bring equipment and experts to the Houthis. He criticised past negotiations, saying: "We have tried repeatedly to negotiate with the Houthis, but that has achieved nothing." He emphasised a strategic shift: "They are no longer an internal threat but have become a regional and international threat because of their threats to the waterways in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab strait. Any understanding with the Houthis must be based on recognition of the need for the state to hold a monopoly over weapons and for the legitimate government to restore the institutions of the state."
Economic impact and Saudi support
Al-Alimi noted that Houthi targeting of oil export facilities had placed severe pressure on the government's budget, including its ability to pay civil servants' salaries. He stated: "Without Saudi support, the government would not have been able to meet its salary obligations." The threat to oil exports made it almost impossible to attract international investors, he said, adding that the government "needs security."
Broader conflict dynamics
Yemen has faced civil war and proxy warfare for over a decade. The Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 against the Houthis, triggering one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Violence flared again in late 2022 after the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a UAE-backed separatist movement, swept through southern territory, splintering the coalition. Al-Alimi claimed that after the STC's failure to establish its own state, there is now greater cohesion within the presidential leadership council. He stressed that many former STC members remain within state structures, from the council through the government and governorates.
Al-Alimi defended reliance on Saudi support, citing a 1,200km shared border, deep historical and cultural ties, and a common destiny. He concluded: "Saudi Arabia has stood by the Yemeni people in all humanitarian, economic, developmental and political fields."
