Arab News | Houthis threatening civil aviation by using modified Iranian defense weapons, Yemeni army says

RIYADH: The Houthi militia is using Iranian air defense weapons that have been modified into loitering missiles, posing a serious threat to civilian aircraft, the spokesperson for Yemen’s armed forces said on Saturday.

The weapons are being converted by Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps experts in Yemen and are being launched from Hodeidah Governorate toward international air routes over the southern Red Sea, Col. Majid Abdullah Al-Nuzaili said. 

Al-Nuzaili said the missiles can cruise for up to 25 minutes each, operate on a thermal tracking system, and attack any heat source without the ability to distinguish between military or civilian targets.

He warned that this constitutes a direct and dangerous threat to the safety of civil aviation and the lives of passengers, including those traveling on humanitarian and relief organization aircraft that use these air routes to Yemen and the region.

Al-Nuzaili highlighted that the dangerous escalation coincides with threats issued by Mohammad Mokhber, adviser to the Iranian Supreme Leader, and Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, to target and disrupt aviation services in the region following sanctions imposed on Iranian airlines.