A senior Iranian lawmaker has denounced as �shameful� a recent move by Saudi warplanes to block a civilian�Iranian aircraft�carrying medical aid�for crisis-hit Yemen, saying what Riyadh did is reminiscent of�actions by the Israeli regime.

Yemen is currently in a very critical situation and Saudi Arabia's��cruel blockage� of humanitarian aid has led to a high number�of civilian casualties in the impoverished country, said�Abbasali Mansouri Arani,�who sits on�the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iran's Parliament (Majlis).

�The delivery�of humanitarian�aid [by Iran] was made with necessary coordination;�however, despite earlier coordination, Saudi Arabia carried out this shameful and regrettable�measure, a move which is a reminder of the Zionist regime's�actions,� the Iranian parliamentarian said.

He said that the Israeli regime, whose creation is based on �aggression, homicide and genocide,��is�preventing�international relief organizations from providing�Palestinians�with their basic requirement.

But, he said, this measure by Saudi Arabia as a Muslim country is �regrettable.�

Mansouri Arani further criticized international organizations for their double�standards towards the Saudi aggression against Yemen, saying international bodies are under the influence of world powers.

The�remarks�by the�Iranian lawmaker came�after an Iranian cargo aircraft carrying medical aid and foodstuff could not land at the international airport in the Yemeni capital, Sana�a, on Tuesday and was forced to return due to Saudi warplanes� violent airstrikes on the�runway of the civilian airport.

The plane had received permits from Omani and Yemeni aviation officials to cross into Yemen�s airspace.

That came just�days after Saudi fighter jets intercepted an Iranian airplane carrying humanitarian aid and medicine as well as injured Yemenis, who had been treated in Iran, and prevented it�from entering the Yemeni airspace. The plane was forced to turn back although it had obtained the necessary permission to�fly along�the Oman-Yemen route.

Saudi Arabia launched its air campaign against Yemen on March 26 - without a United Nations mandate - in a bid to undermine the Houthi movement's�Ansarullah fighters and to restore power to the country�s fugitive former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a staunch ally of Riyadh.

On April 21, Riyadh announced the end of the first phase of its unlawful military operation, which has claimed the lives of about�1,000 people, but airstrikes have continued with Saudi bombers targeting different areas across the country.

By Press TV