A missile struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday, killing 12 and injuring 309 people, the Saudi Civil Aviation Authority said on Sunday.
The dead included four Saudis, two people from Bangladesh and one person each from the US, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt, the authority said.
The authority also announced a “temporary suspension of airport operations pending completion of damage assessments and verification of the safety of its facilities.”
Iran-backed Houthis have recently intensified attacks deep inside Saudi Arabia and against the kingdom’s aviation infrastructure, killing six people this week and forcing a suspension of air traffic at Riyadh’s main airport.
The Houthis for weeks have fought with Yemeni government forces along the country’s Red Sea coast. At the same time, however, they have escalated strikes against Saudi Arabia, following years of relative calm. The Houthis also threaten the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which Saudi Arabia has relied on more for oil exports through the Red Sea port of Yanbu since the Strait of Hormuz has been disrupted by the Iran War.
The escalation puts pressure on Washington, which has so far held off on striking the Houthis despite at least two requests from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters briefly on Saturday that he had just learned of the latest attack on Saudi Arabia and would make a decision about how to respond.
Hours earlier, Trump had described the targeting of Riyadh airport as “not a good thing,” adding that he was unhappy with what was happening.
The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh said it was aware of attacks on King Khalid International Airport on Saturday and advised American citizens to avoid the airport and surrounding areas.
Western embassies also urged their citizens in Saudi Arabia to stay away from Riyadh airport, according to AFP.
Earlier, Riyadh airport issued a notice advising passengers to contact their airlines and check the status of their flights.
Kuwait Airways said it had canceled two flights to and from the Saudi capital due to what it described as the closure of Riyadh airport amid the “security situation.”
Six people have been killed this week in attacks on two Saudi airports claimed by the Houthis, which the U.S. State Department has designated a terrorist organization. The General Authority of Civil Aviation said three Saudi nationals were killed in two attacks on King Khalid International Airport on Thursday, following the deaths of three others in attacks targeting the airport and Abha airport.
On Friday, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency expanded the area within Saudi airspace where it recommends that airlines avoid flying.
In its advisory, the agency said recent Houthi attacks had demonstrated the group’s ability to strike deep inside Saudi territory, including the capital, with aviation infrastructure increasingly becoming a focus compared with previous attacks.
Maj. Gen. Mohsen Khasrouf, a former director of moral guidance in the Yemeni army, told MBN that the Houthis aim to “punish Saudi Arabia” for supporting the Yemeni government. They are seeking to force Riyadh out of the Yemeni conflict, he said, which would allow them to take control of the entire country.
Former U.S. diplomat Tom Warrick told MBN that the situation had become a war between a powerful and highly dangerous Houthi regime and Saudi Arabia.
Riyadh needs a new strategy to address a different kind of threat in a world increasingly shaped by drone warfare, he said. Otherwise, Saudi influence in the region will face a sustained challenge that the kingdom cannot afford.
Sources close to the Turkish authorities previously disclosed details to MBN of Turkish military assistance to Saudi Arabia, including various types of weapons.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan confirmed that Ankara had provided military support to the kingdom, saying it was focused largely on air defense capabilities.
Last week, Yemeni government forces launched a military operation, backed by Saudi air power, called “Dawn of Yemen.” The campaign aims to retake areas captured by the Houthis following their advances last month along Yemen’s western coast overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Since Thursday night, Saudi warplanes have struck areas in the capital, Sanaa, targeting weapons depots at Mount Attan and communications towers. They also bombed the Bani Hushaysh area near Sanaa.
On Friday, Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al Jaber announced on X that Bab al-Mandab had been “cleared of remnants of the Houthi militia.”
The Houthis deny that government forces have taken control of Bab al-Mandab, saying they repelled a second attack launched from Lahj toward the strait.
Khasrouf said the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia make it imperative for the kingdom to increase its support for the Yemeni army by providing advanced weapons and air cover to enable its forces to advance and eliminate the threat posed by the rebel group.
In 2014, the Houthis seized large parts of northern Yemen, including the capital, Sanaa, prompting Saudi Arabia to intervene militarily in 2015 amid concerns over Iranian influence along its border.
A United Nations-brokered truce in 2022 largely halted the fighting but failed to produce a lasting settlement before the latest wave of hostilities erupted alongside the war involving Iran.
