WATCH WHO chief escape Israeli airstrike

The head of the UN’s global health watchdog said he narrowly escaped death when Israel struck the airport in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, on Thursday.

World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Ghebreyesus visited the civil-war torn country to negotiate the release of UN workers held by the Houthis rebels who control Sanaa. Israeli jets struck the airport as the UN team was about to board their plane. 

Security camera footage posted by Ghebreyesus shows the WHO chief being quickly escorted by his team from the airport lounge, as well as a strike on a control tower. 

“It was very chaotic. People were in disarray and running everywhere and no shelter: we were completely exposed,” Ghebreyesus told reporters after returning to Switzerland on Saturday, as quoted by AFP.

“It’s a matter of luck. Otherwise, if the missile deviated just slightly, it could have been on our heads... my colleague actually said after all that, we escaped death narrowly.”

In a post on X, Ghebreyesus thanked everyone for the words of support. “I’m especially grateful to the colleagues and airport staff, who were selfless as they tried to protect me,” he said. 

Julien Harneis, the UN’s coordinator for Yemen, said that a UN worker was injured with shrapnel. “I saw his blood on the tarmac this morning as we said goodbye to Tedros,” he said on Friday. 

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducted airstrikes in response to Houthi missile attacks on Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities. According to the IDF, the Houthis were using the country’s airport and seaports to smuggle weapons from Iran.