Yemenupdated 1h ago2 min read
Houthis Kill Three Saudi Nationals in Riyadh’s King Khalid Airport Attacks
Three Saudi nationals killed in two attacks on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport. Several injured, including nationals of various countries; Saudi Airlines aircraft damaged.
Riyadh Airport Attacked
Yemen’s Houthis attacked King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with two cruise missiles, and Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said the attacks killed three Saudi nationals and injured several people. The General Authority of Civil Aviation said the first attack targeted airport facilities while the second struck an aircraft belonging to state carrier Saudia, and it said airport operations resumed and air traffic returned to normal.
“Among the victims was Captain Hamoud Ali Alkalthami, a pilot for the Saudi airline.”
The Houthis said they also targeted an airport in Najran and an airbase in Khamis Mushait, while Saudi Arabia had not confirmed those claims. Saudia said one of its pilots was among those killed, and Reuters reported that the injuries ranged from minor to severe and that the attacks caused material damage.
Claims, Warnings, and Disruption
The Houthis warned that they were targeting Saudi Arabia over its support for government forces in Yemen’s reignited civil war, and the General Authority of Civil Aviation said the attacks resulted in "injuries to a number of Saudi citizens and residents of various nationalities". The Associated Press reported that a witness said outgoing flights were halted and passengers were instructed to leave checked-in luggage behind and evacuate, while Flightradar24 said King Khalid International Airport "closed again".
The United States urged heightened vigilance, and the CNN report said the US Mission in Saudi Arabia warned American citizens to exercise heightened vigilance and noted the conflict "has the potential to escalate." The Houthis’ military spokesman Yahya Saree said the rebels fired more ballistic and cruise missiles at the airports in Riyadh and Najran, and the AP said it could not independently verify the claims.
Broader Yemen Stakes
Saudi Arabia said it was backing an offensive by Yemen’s UN-recognised government to take back territory from the Houthis, and the BBC said the latest attacks came amid renewed fighting between Yemen’s Saudi-backed government forces and the Houthis, who control most of the country’s north-west. The BBC reported that the Houthis seized strategically important stretches of the Red Sea coast, including the port of Mokha on the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and it said Yemeni pro-government forces had since said they had "secured" the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea.
The New York Times said the escalating violence brought the conflict in Yemen to the doorstep of the Saudi capital, and it reported that the Houthis claimed responsibility and said they had also targeted infrastructure in the south of the kingdom. The AP said Saudi officials accused the Houthis of threatening the crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, and it reported that the rebels’ presence on the Bab el-Mandeb posed a threat to the shipping route.