Sanaa outlines losses on 10th anniversary of airport closure, demands end to air restrictions
SANAA, Aug. 08 (YPA) – Yemen’s Ministry of Transport and Public Works, along with the General Authority of Civil Aviation and Meteorology in Sanaa, held a joint press conference and rally at Sanaa International Airport on Saturday to mark ten years since its unilateral closure by Saudi Ministry of Defense on August 8, 2016.
Authorities reiterated demands for a complete lifting of all restrictions on the airport and Yemeni airspace.
In a joint statement, the ministry and authority asserted that the closure was a unilateral action lacking UN authorization. They stated that a decade of continuous restrictions has caused severe human and economic losses, calling on the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the UN Security Council to fulfill their responsibilities to end the ban.
The statement added that leadership retains full authorization to take appropriate measures to restore Yemen’s right to manage its airspace.
Detailing the economic and operational impact, Director of Sanaa International Airport Khaled Al-Shayef said the flight ban—affecting an airport that serves more than 15 governorates—has deprived approximately 24 million passengers and 1.5 million patients of their rights to travel and seek medical treatment.
He added that the closure resulted in the cancellation of half a million flights and led to indirect economic losses exceeding $6 billion.
Addressing the health consequences, Anis Al-Asbahi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Environment in Sanaa, stated that the blockade prevented over 200,000 patients from traveling abroad for treatment, leading to tens of thousands of deaths, alongside a deficit of more than 1,600 essential pharmaceutical items.
Echoing these concerns, Ali Taysir, head of the National Human Rights Commission, noted that closing the airport transformed a vital lifeline into a direct driver of worsening humanitarian distress and fatal outcomes for patients unable to access medicine or travel abroad.
YPA