Red Cross plane forced to redirect and land after veering off course in Yemen
The Arab Coalition fighting in Yemen said it was forced to redirect a Red Cross plane to land in southern Saudi Arabia after it veered off course towards a conflict area.
Coalition spokesman Col Turki Al Malki said the aircraft heading to Djibouti changed its direction after taking off from Yemen’s rebel-held capital Sanaa.
“Coalition forces communicated with the aircraft on the international distress frequency, but the crew did not respond,” Col Al Malki told the official Saudi Press Agency.
“Commands were given to redirect the aircraft away from the operations zone, but to no avail. The aircraft was forced to land in Jizan at 2.16pm.”
Col Al Malki said the decision was made to “guarantee the safety of air space, crew and humanitarian staffers who were on board”.
The Saudi-led coalition, which includes the UAE, accused the crew of airspace breaches and of jeopardising the safety of four passengers on-board.
The International Committee of the Red Cross later said the plane had made “an unscheduled stop” in Jizan because of “technical issues”.
“The issue was resolved and the plane has landed in Djibouti this evening,” the Red Cross said, adding that it was investigating.
The humanitarian agency last month pulled 71 of its international staff from Yemen over rising security threats, more than half of the Red Cross international staff there.
Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis yesterday attacked a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea, causing only slight damage, Saudi state television reported.