Yemen's Houthis suspend int'l flights over COVID-19 concerns

Yemen's Houthi militia authorities on Saturday announced the suspension of international flights for two weeks over concerns about COVID-19.

The Houthi-controlled supreme ministerial committee for combating epidemics said in a press conference that "the decision comes as a precautionary measure against the spread of coronavirus across the world."

Yemen's airspace has been controlled by the Saudi-led coalition since its intervention in the Yemeni conflict in March 2015 to support the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The Houthi-controlled Sanaa International Airport has since received only flights belonging to the United Nations aid agencies.

The Yemeni citizens have been using the government-controlled airports in the southern cities since 2015.

The Houthi authorities also decided to end school year this month, ahead of scheduled time, in cities under its control over concerns about COVID-19.

The World Health Organization said this week on Twitter that "no cases of the novel coronavirus have been recorded in Yemen."

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthis seized control of much of the country's north and forced the Saudi-backed government of Hadi out of Sanaa.