WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says it quickly became apparent the airport was under attack, with strikes "alarmingly" close to where he was sitting near the departure lounge.

The head of the World Health Organization said on Friday he was not sure he was going to survive an air strike on Yemen's main airport carried out by Israel a day earlier during a series of attacks on the Iran-aligned Houthi movement.

Israeli fighter jets targeted sites in Yemen on Thursday, including the international airport of the capital Sana'a, in response to attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi movement. The Houthi-controlled health ministry said at least four people were killed and 42 injured.