Spokesman for the Armed Forces of Yemen, Brigadier General Yahya Saree.

Yemen says it has intercepted Saudi warplanes attempting to prevent an Iranian plane from landing at Sana`a airport.

Spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, said in a statement on Friday that Yemeni air defense forces intercepted Saudi warplanes attempting to prevent an Iranian plane from landing at Sana`a airport

Yemenis appreciate the Islamic Republic of Iran`s initiative to break the Saudi blockade and facilitate the transport of patients, stranded individuals, and official and public delegations participating in the funeral ceremony of Martyr Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, he added.

The statement run by Yemen news agency read as follows: "This morning, Friday, at 5:20 AM, a formation of Saudi enemy warplanes violated Yemeni airspace in an attempt to prevent an Iranian civilian aircraft carrying more than 200 stranded, wounded, and sick citizens from landing at Sana`a International Airport, which is along with Yemen, has been under an unjust blockade for nearly 11 years, however, thanks be to Allah, their attempt failed through the interception of the warplanes by the Yemeni Armed Forces that thwarted this attempt by targeting the warplanes with a number of air defense missiles, forcing it to leave Yemeni airspace by the grace and power of Allah."

"Yemeni Armed Forces," the statement continued, "warn the criminal Saudi enemy against repeating any attempt to violate our airspace or any aggression targeting our country, such actions will be met with a comprehensive response targeting its airports and vital interests on land and sea."

The statement added that the Yemeni Armed Forces "will not accept the continuation of the unjust Saudi-American blockade on the country indefinitely, and we will take all legitimate steps to end this blockade."

"We declare our combat readiness in response to the call of our leader, Sayyid Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi," it continued.

The statement added that the Yemeni armed forces`s "fingers are on the trigger to implement directives aimed at breaking the Saudi-American siege on our dear people and expelling the occupiers."

The statement ended with Yemeni Armed Forces affirming "the continuation of flights between Sana`a and Tehran airports... to break the siege and alleviate the suffering of our dear, oppressed Yemeni people, whatever the consequences and repercussions."

The Yemeni Armed Forces statement came as foreign delegations from 100 countries arrived in Tehran for funeral processions paying homage to martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated in a cowardly US-Israeli strike on February 28 at his residence in Tehran.

Following the strong military retaliation by Tehran, the US-Israeli war on Iran ended with a ceasefire and an Islamabad-brokered Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on June 17 by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and his American counterpart, Donald Trump.

The MoU, which removed the US-imposed blockade on Iran, defers future talks over contentious issues between the two sides to take place over a 60-day ceasefire extension.