Israeli air strikes hit Yemen’s main airport as a civilian Airbus 320 with hundreds of passengers on board was landing and a UN delegation was waiting to leave, the UN’s top humanitarian official in Yemen. Julien Harneis told UN reporters that the most frightening thing about the two air strikes wasn’t their effect on him and about 15 others in the VIP lounge at the international airport in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, including the head of the UN World Health Organisation. Rather, it was the destruction of the airport control tower as a Yemenia Airways plane was taxiing in after touching down.

Yemen’s Deputy Transport Minister Faisal al-Sayani. Pic/PTI