Five hours ago, an Iranian vessel carrying 2,500 tonnes of humanitarian aid for the people of Yemen finally unloaded in Djibouti. After receiving word from the US warning them not to continue on their course towards Yemen's Hodeida port - the American naval blockade of the country would not allow them through- they headed to Djibouti, where the cargo was left with World Food Organization. Iranian officials have made it clear that the ship may be inspected fully by the UN, but refused inspection from any Saudi or US officials.
This distrust is not unprecedented. Three weeks ago an Iranian aid plane was intercepted by Saudi jets giving them orders to redirect the flight to a Saudi airfield, even though an Iranian Foreign Ministry official said that the Iranian Red Cresent Society (IRCS) had obtained the necessary permission for the flight from Oman and Yemen. After the Captain, Behzad sedaqatnia, refused to follow the order, he recalls "For five minutes there was no Radio signals, then Sana'a Airport officials told us that the Sana'a Airport was being bombarded and it is not safe for you to land here." The bombing of Sana'a Airport is one of many air strikes being carried out by Saudi Arabia in Sana'a, in an attempt to take down the Houthi rebels and restore the authority of President Abderabbo Mansour Al-Hadi, who has fled to Riyadh.
Another Iranian aid plane carrying 20 tonnes of humanitarian aid to a UN relief hub in Djibouti was also not give permission to land. An unnamed Red Crescent official was quoted by the Iranian news agency IRNA as saying that "Despite coordination with the United Nations and the WFP, the plane was not granted permission to land in Djibouti." There are suspicions that the Saudi government may have pressured Djibouti into turning the plane away, but this cannot be substantiated.
After all of the commotion, yesterday's cargo ship has unloaded in Djibouti, and "all the aid and humanitarian assistance will be sent on the WFP ships to Yemen" said Abeer Etefa, WFP spokeswoman. Let's just hope that this is the end of the excitement and that the people of Yemen will finally recieve the aid they desperately need.
