Live Updates: 22 Dead, Over 50 Injured as Blast Rocks Yemen's Aden Airport Upon Gov't Plane Landing

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The United States has strongly condemned the deadly attack on the airport of Aden in southern Yemen, the National Security Council said.

On Wednesday, Aden airport was attacked as a plane carrying newly sworn-in Yemeni cabinet ministers arrived at the airport. At least 25 people were reportedly killed and 110 others have been injured in the incident.

“The United States strongly condemns today’s attack in Aden against the newly-formed Republic of Yemen Government. We stand with the government and people of Yemen as they strive for a better future,” the council wrote on its Twitter page on late Wednesday.

BEIRUT (Sputnik) – The attack on the airport in the southern Yemeni city of Aden poses a threat to the stability in the Persian Gulf region, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said.

On Wednesday, Aden airport was attacked as a plane carrying newly sworn-in Yemeni cabinet ministers arrived at the airport. Twenty-two people were reportedly killed and over 50 have been injured.

“The terrorist attack on the airport of Aden at the moment of ministers’ arrival deserves strong condemnation. This terrorist attack is threatening the Riyadh agreements and the stability both in the Persian Gulf and Yemen,” Hariri wrote on his Twitter page on late Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of employees of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), who had been killed by the Wednesday attack on the airport in the southern Yemeni city of Aden, has risen from one to three.

On Wednesday, Aden airport was attacked as a plane carrying newly sworn-in Yemeni cabinet ministers arrived at the airport. Over 20 people were reportedly killed and more than 50 have been injured in the incident.

"The ICRC is profoundly saddened that 3 of our colleagues were among those killed in Aden's airport explosion earlier today," the organization wrote on its Twitter page on late Wednesday.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the deadly attack on Aden airport in Yemen, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said in a statement on Wednesday.

“The Secretary-General condemns the deplorable attack on Aden airport shortly after the arrival of the newly formed Yemeni cabinet, which killed and wounded dozens of people,” Haq said. “He extends his profound condolences to the families of the victims as well as to the people and the Government of Yemen.”

“I condemn this act and all attacks against humanitarian workers”, Lowcock said. “This tragic event is an urgent reminder that all parties in the conflict must respect their obligations under International Humanitarian Law to protect civilians, provide aid workers with a safe working environment and to spare civilian objects”, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said in a statement.

The Saudi-led coalition waging war in Yemen said Wednesday that it brought down an explosive drone that was heading to the presidential al-Maashiq palace in Aden, media reported.

The news comes hours after an explosion rocked the Aden airport, resulting in five casualties, moments after a plane with the country's new government had landed there. Yemeni authorities said that the airport had been shelled by Ansar Allah (Houthi) rebels, but Houthi political bureau member Muhammad al-Bakhiti denied the group's involvement in the incident.

According to Sky News Arabia, quoting the Saudi-led coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki, the booby-trapped drone was sent by the Houthi rebel militia and was downed in the vicinity of the palace.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF), an international medical humanitarian organisation, has worked out an emergency plan to deal with the influx of patients injured in an attack on Yemen’s Aden airport, while 15 victims of the attack have already been admitted, MSF Deputy Head of Mission in Yemen Ricardo Fernandez told Sputnik Wednesday.

"MSF prepared MCP [Multiple Casualty Plan] plan to receive patients, and we received 15 patients till now, between red and yellow cases in the ER of MSF trauma hospital. Most of the patients went to Al Gumhoria hospital in Aden, and the cases we received were transferred from there due Al Gumhoria being overwhelmed", Fernandez said when asked about the mission's response to the incident.

"We express our condolences for those who lost their life and wishes for those injured to recover soon as a result of the terrorist attack today on Aden airport upon the arrival of the plane of the new government. ... We are calling upon the international community to condemn this terrorist act", Yemeni ambassador to Russia Ahmed Salem Al-Wahishi said.

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We extend our sincere condolences to the families of the victims, and we hope for a speedy recovery for anyone injured.

— ICRC Yemen (@ICRC_ye) December 30, 2020

"Moscow strongly condemns this criminal act. We stand for its thorough and objective investigation. We express our condolences to the families and friends of the victims, as well as our wishes for a speedy recovery to those wounded", the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Moscow proceeds from the fact that the attack on the Aden airport confirmed the need for an early comprehensive political settlement of the protracted military-political crisis in Yemen, it says.

"We are convinced that without the development of appropriate compromise agreements by all the participants in the internal Yemeni conflict, it is impossible to achieve a solution to the numerous problems of this country, including ensuring an adequate level of public security, as well as a decisive struggle against Al-Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula, Daesh (both banned in Russia) and other terrorist groups in Yemen", the ministry added.

The explosion that happened in Yemen's Aden earlier in the day near the government palace of Maashiq, where members of the new government moved after the explosion at the airport, could have been caused by a missile strike or a drone crash, Sky News Arabia reported, citing its sources in Aden.

Earlier, Reuters reported that an explosion occurred near the government palace in Aden.

There were no casualties reported from this incident.

"The number of victims of the attack on the Aden airport increased to 22, more than 50 are injured, some of them are in serious condition", a local source in Aden told Sputnik on Wednesday.

An explosion occurred near the Maashiq government palace in Aden, where members of Yemen's new government sit, Reuters reported, citing local residents and local media outlets.

The cause of the explosion is currently unknown, and no casualties have been reported.

We assure our ppl that all cabinet members r safe, &cowardly terrorist attack by Iran-backed Houthi militia on Aden airport will not deter us fm our duty & our life isn’t more valuable than other Yemenis.
May Allah have mercy on souls of martyrs, &wish fast recovery 4injured

— معمر الإرياني (@ERYANIM) December 30, 2020

The explosion at the Aden Airport was caused by a missile attack carried out from the southwestern province of Taiz, which is under control of the Shia rebel Houthi movement, a military source told Sputnik.

Another source claimed three blasts in a row rocked the airport terminal.