by Murad Abdo

ADEN, Yemen, June 1 (Xinhua) -- After Israeli airstrikes reduced Yemenia Airways' last operational aircraft in Sanaa to smoldering wreckage on Wednesday, thousands of Yemenis were left stranded -- waiting for the restoration of a vital lifeline that once offered a way out of the war-torn nation in times of emergency.

The targeted plane -- a 40-million-U.S. dollar Airbus that was preparing to transport pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for Hajj -- marked the final blow to an airline fleet already decimated by war. With four aircraft totalling 130 million dollars now lost, the Sanaa International Airport has fallen silent. Its scarred runways mirror the despair of those stranded: pilgrims like Ali Al-Shahari, who saved for years to afford his sacred journey.

"I saved every riyal for this moment," Al-Shahari told Xinhua, his voice crumbling. "Now I have nothing left, and no way to reach Mecca."

Like hundreds of others, Al-Shahari discovered that tickets issued in Houthi-controlled Sanaa are void in Aden, which is under the control of Yemen's internationally recognized government. "I'm now stuck and don't know what to do," he said.

For some patients, the airport's closure, announced by Yemenia Airways following the Israeli bombardment, could be life-threatening.

Hamoud Abu Khaled had sold his family's possessions -- jewelry, furniture, even his children's school supplies -- to fund his wife's critical treatment in Jordan. But with their flight canceled, her condition deteriorates, and their hope is fading.

"The doctors in Jordan were waiting for us. Now we have nothing left to try again," Khaled said.

The airport's closure has also exposed the deep-rooted political fractures within Yemen. Yemenia Airways has been splintered into rival entities -- a Houthi-controlled Sanaa branch and a government-run branch in Aden. The situation has left passengers caught in the crossfire of political feuds.

On Friday, the Aden-based government told Russia's RT Arabic that it had urged the Houthis via local mediators to keep the then last operational aircraft in Sanaa away from possible danger amid potential Israeli attacks, but the Houthis instead threatened to bomb government-controlled airports in Aden, Mocha, and Riyan if Yemenia Airways' aircraft were not allowed to land at Houthis-controlled Sanaa International Airport.

A day later, the Houthis condemned the Aden branch of Yemenia Airways for refusing to honor Sanaa-issued tickets as violating citizens' rights. Later, the Aden branch countered that the Houthis divert ticket revenues to the Sanaa branch instead of the airline's operational hub in Aden.

A government source, speaking to Xinhua on condition of anonymity, blamed the Houthis for "gambling" with the four destroyed aircraft: first seizing them as property, and then refusing to relocate them from danger despite warnings.

The deadlock leaves thousands of ordinary Yemenis paying the price. On the one hand, the Aden branch refuses to honor tickets issued in Sanaa, leaving families who purchased tickets there unable to rebook through alternative routes via Aden. On the other hand, the Sanaa branch refuses to provide refunds, preventing travelers from reclaiming their money to make new arrangements.

Transportation restrictions have plagued Yemen since 2015, as Yemeni citizens could only use government-controlled airports in Aden and Seiyun. A UN-brokered truce in 2022 eased the burden by reopening Sanaa for two weekly round-trip flights to Amman. But even this minimal service is now gone with the destruction of the last operational aircraft.

Now with only three planes left in Yemenia Airways's fleet operated by the Aden-based government, Aden cannot absorb Sanaa's huge traffic. Medical evacuations are stalled, students are missing scholarships abroad, and elderly pilgrims are losing what may be their final chance to perform Hajj.

"They tell us to go to Aden, but we have no money left for new tickets," one stranded traveler explained to Xinhua. "Then Aden says our tickets are worthless. We are trapped between their politics while our lives fall apart."