Yemen’s Minister of Health and Environment, Ali Shaiban , denounced the prolonged closure of Sana’a International Airport as a crime against humanity and a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law , exacerbating an unprecedented health crisis in the country.
Speaking to a local media outlet, Shaiban stated that the air blockade—a direct result of the Zionist enemy 's attacks on the terminal—has caused a critical shortage of medicines and medical supplies , especially those requiring refrigerated transport or special conditions , which are essential for thousands of critically ill patients.
He explained that this situation has left people without access to vital medications, including those for kidney transplants, blood products, hormone and immunomodulatory treatments , as well as resuscitation drugs, anesthesia, anticoagulants, and diagnostic solutions . According to Shaiban, thousands of patients have already died due to lack of treatment, and the number continues to rise.
“The aggressor forces completely ignore humanitarian and ethical considerations, imposing a suffocating siege on the Yemeni people, unprecedented in modern history, in the face of a shameful international silence ,” he denounced.
The airport closure has also prevented thousands of citizens from traveling abroad for medical treatment , while the most urgent supplies cannot enter Yemen by any alternative means. Shaiban stressed that air transport is the only safe and viable way to deliver medicines that cannot withstand long journeys or sudden temperature changes.
The Minister further explained that the indirect damage caused by the blockade is even greater than that produced by direct attacks: the increase in epidemics , the increase in infant and maternal mortality , the spread of contagious diseases, and the inability of the health system to expand, plan, and serve the population .
The situation is aggravated by the chronic crisis: patients with kidney, cardiovascular, immunological or metabolic diseases have been left without their essential treatments, causing deaths that cannot always be recorded, but which, according to Shaiban, are part of a tragedy that “is impossible to quantify in its full magnitude”.
Since October 2023 , Sana’a International Airport has been repeatedly bombed due to Yemen’s active support for the Gaza Strip . The most devastating attacks occurred on May 6 and 28, 2025 , rendering the terminal completely inoperable and further isolating the country during a health emergency.
Shaiban reiterated an urgent appeal to the United Nations and international organizations to intervene immediately and facilitate the reopening of the airport, ensuring the entry of medicines that cannot be transported by land or sea . He stressed that reactivating humanitarian flights is an essential measure to save the lives of thousands of people, especially children .