Barran Press
The first Yemeni Airways plane held by the Houthi group, designated as a terrorist organization by the international community, departed Sana'a International Airport on Friday, July 5th, 2024, bound for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Sources within the aviation sector confirmed the departure, stating that the plane was carrying the first batch of stranded pilgrims who had been unable to return to Sana'a due to the Houthis' seizure of four Yemeni Airways planes transporting pilgrims.
The plane's departure follows an agreement facilitated by Omani mediation, which saw the Houthis release the four seized planes in Sana'a in exchange for the resumption of the Sana'a-Amman flight route.
On Thursday evening, the internationally recognized Yemeni government's Ministry of Awqaf and Guidance informed Hajj agencies that Yemeni Airways would resume transporting stranded pilgrims from Jeddah to Sana'a via two flights.
The first flight was scheduled to depart on Friday, July 5th, 2024, at 4:30 PM, while the second flight was scheduled for Saturday, July 6th, 2024, at 8:30 AM.
On June 26th, 2024, Yemeni Airways apologized to Hajj pilgrims for their inability to transport them to the Yemeni capital Sana'a due to the Houthis' seizure of four of their planes.
The airline confirmed in a statement that the Houthis had seized four of their planes at Sana'a International Airport, calling the act a threat to the country's aviation safety and making it more difficult to operate flights to and from within the country.
Following the incident, the Presidential Leadership Council formed a government committee on June 28th, 2024, headed by Prime Minister Ahmed bin Mubarak, to address the crisis of the Houthis' seizure of Yemeni Airways planes transporting pilgrims to Sana'a International Airport.
According to the official Saba news agency, the government committee's mission includes restricting the Houthis' use of the seized planes until further notice, including the release of a plane that has been held for two months, and lifting the ban on the company's frozen assets, which exceed $100 million.