By targeting Abha airport and ending the de-escalation, Sana’a is drawing up a new deterrence equation and launching a phase of reclaiming rights.

The brutal Saudi aggression that targeted Sana’a International Airport was not just a new attack on a civilian facility, but rather constituted a very important turning point in the course of the confrontation between Yemen and the Saudi regime, and redrawn the rules of engagement that prevailed during the de-escalation phase.

The raids that targeted the airport were not interpreted in Sana’a as a passing military incident, but rather as a Saudi decision to reignite the confrontation, a practical blow to all existing understandings, and a direct attack on Yemeni sovereignty and the right of the Yemeni people to move and travel through its airports and national ports.

In the past few hours, Sana’a has moved from the stage of political condemnation to the stage of imposing a new deterrence equation, which was translated on the ground into a qualitative military operation that targeted Abha International Airport. This was followed by the announcement by the Yemeni Armed Forces of imposing a ban on air traffic in Saudi airspace, in an unprecedented step that confirms that the era of attacks without consequence has ended, and that any targeting of Yemeni airports will be met with a direct response that will target enemy airports, within the framework of a new equation entitled “airport for airport.. and airspace for airspace”, in order to obtain the national and human rights that the Yemeni people have been demanding throughout the years of aggression and siege.

The attack on Sana’a airport crossed all red lines.
In a dangerous escalation, Saudi warplanes targeted Sana’a International Airport with several air raids that hit the runways, in an attempt to put the airport out of service and prevent the return of Yemeni patients and travelers, as well as the Yemeni delegation participating in the funeral ceremonies for the martyr Sayyid Ali Khamenei, to their homeland.

The choice of Sana’a Airport as a target for this aggression was not arbitrary, as the airport represents the only air gateway on which millions of Yemenis depend, and a vital humanitarian lifeline for patients and travelers, after many years of siege and closure. This made targeting it a direct attack on the right of Yemenis to move around, and a flagrant violation of national sovereignty and international laws and norms.

Sanaa believes that the Saudi aggression reflects Riyadh’s insistence on maintaining the blockade imposed on Yemen, and its attempt to re-impose guardianship over Yemeni decision-making, after failing throughout the years of aggression to achieve its military and political goals.

End of de-escalation: Sana’a announces the end of the truce phase
The Yemeni response was not limited to political condemnation, but came quickly and decisively, as the Yemeni leadership announced that the Saudi aggression had practically ended the de-escalation and ceasefire phase, and that the Saudi regime bears full responsibility for all the consequences and repercussions that will result from this escalation.

The Yemeni armed forces confirmed that targeting Sana’a airport crossed all red lines, and that the aggression will not go unanswered and unpunished, warning the Saudi regime that reigniting the confrontation will impose a new reality that will come at a high cost on all military, security and economic levels.

Official statements issued by various state institutions also confirmed that the recent aggression targeted not only a civilian facility, but also Yemeni sovereignty and undermined the path to de-escalation, which makes the response a legitimate right guaranteed by international laws, as well as a national duty to defend the land and sovereignty.

The Yemeni response: “Airport for airport.”
Only a few hours passed before the Yemeni armed forces translated their threat into action on the ground, announcing the execution of a qualitative military operation targeting Abha International Airport deep inside Saudi Arabia with a number of ballistic missiles and drones, in a clear message that the equations of confrontation have changed, and that any targeting of Yemeni airports will be met with a direct targeting of enemy airports.

The operation came to confirm that Sanaa no longer deals with attacks with the logic of limited reactions, but rather according to a new strategic deterrence equation, based on the principle of reciprocity, so that targeting Yemeni civilian facilities becomes a direct reason for targeting similar facilities inside the Saudi interior.

This equation confirms that the era of aggression monopolizing the skies and decision-making has ended, and that Yemen now possesses the