Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted on Saturday that “missiles over Saudi Arabia” prevented his plane from crossing Saudi airspace in order to go to the UAE.
In an interview with Channel 13, Netanyahu spoke of “missiles in the skies of Saudi Arabia a week ago,” referring to attacks on a Saudi oil facility in Dammam last week, which was claimed by the Yemeni Armed Forces.
“I don’t want to go into details,” Netanyahu said.
Although the direct flight between Israel and Abu Dhabi was opened across Saudi airspace, Netanyahu ultimately decided to fly by helicopter from Ben Gurion Airport to the Jordanian capital of Amman, and from there by private jet to Abu Dhabi, Ynet news outlet reported.
However, this flight plan was also cancelled, after Jordan denied Netanyahu access to its airspace on Thursday, after Tel Aviv prevented Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Wednesday evening.
On Friday, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi lashed out at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over a canceled visit to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount by Jordan’s Crown Prince Hussein.
Safadi confirmed that Jordan canceled Netanyahu’s overflight permission in retaliation, causing him to postpone a planned visit to the United Arab Emirates.
The diplomatic spat underscored Jordanian frustrations with Netanyahu and tensions between the two neighbours that have simmered for years.
Perhaps even more notably, the fact that the Zionist leader had to cancel earlier arrangements with Saudi Arabia due to fear of Yemeni missile strikes, indicates that the Yemeni resistance forces are considered as a force to be reckoned with.
