An attack on Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed at least 12 people and injured 309, making it the deadliest assault on the kingdom in more than a decade.
Yemen’s Houthis have escalated their campaign against the kingdom, with the latest attack following two previous strikes on the same airport that left four people dead.
Four Saudi citizens, two Bangladeshi nationals, and one citizen each from the United States, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Palestine and Sudan were killed in the attack on Saturday.
Authorities said many of the injured were in critical condition and receiving treatment at hospitals across the city.
The Houthis have intensified their attacks on Saudi Arabia after a ceasefire between the two sides collapsed over the summer. Saudi Arabia backs Yemen’s internationally recognised government against its escalating conflict with the Iranian-backed Houthis.
A Saudi-led military coalition vowed to respond to the attack, describing it as a “war crime” and blaming the Houthis.
On Sunday, Houthis warned airlines and passengers against using Saudi airports and airspace — apart from those in Makkah and Madinah. The statement did not refer to Saturday’s assault but they had previously claimed responsibility for the attacks on the same airport on Thursday.
Global condemnation
Houthi attacks on Thursday and earlier in the week had already prompted several airlines to suspend or cancel services to Riyadh, ahead of major energy and investment conferences scheduled to take place in the Saudi capital, including the World Petroleum Conference.
The Arab League condemned the continuing Houthi attacks, warning that repeated strikes on civilian aviation facilities represented a dangerous escalation and a violation of international law.
“[The attacks] also pose a direct threat to the safety of civilians, international air navigation, and the security and stability of the region,” the organisation said in a statement posted on X.
Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, Qatar’s former prime minister, said the latest attack demonstrated that standing with Saudi Arabia in a “practical and decisive” manner was “more urgent than ever”.
“It has now become clear that Iran is our primary adversary,” he wrote in a post on X, warning that the Gulf Cooperation Council faced “several hostile plots and conspiracies” requiring unity and foresight.
Egypt’s foreign ministry also condemned the attacks, expressing its “profound denunciation” of the strikes and describing them as a “flagrant violation” of international law that disregarded civilian safety.
US President Donald Trump said the deadly attacks were “not acceptable” and that he planned to speak with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He indicated that the United States could join Saudi Arabia in launching strikes against the Houthis.
Image credit: Kskhh, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
