At least 12 individuals lost their lives and hundreds more were injured on Saturday during a missile strike on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The attack represents a significant escalation at the capital’s primary aviation hub, which has been subjected to multiple assaults this week.
The Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation confirmed the casualties in subsequent statements. The deceased include four Saudi nationals, two Bangladeshi citizens, and one national each from the United States, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Palestine, and Sudan. The authority reported that 309 others were wounded, with all victims receiving treatment at various hospitals across the city.
Following the incident, the aviation authority suspended all operations at the airport indefinitely. A separate Saudi-led coalition statement indicated that a projectile had also landed near King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, located in the eastern part of the kingdom.
Witnesses and medical sources described the severity of the aftermath. One local medical source told AFP that emergency room doctors were being summoned to hospitals across Riyadh, with one source characterizing the situation as a “serious emergency.” Ambulances were observed outside the passenger terminal as injured individuals were transported for care.
Diplomatic missions from several Western nations, including the United States, Canada, Spain, and Germany, issued advisories urging their citizens to avoid the area. The US embassy acknowledged awareness of the attacks, while Spain referenced the incident as another strike by Houthi rebels, and Canada warned of ongoing military activity in the region.
Although the Iran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen did not immediately claim responsibility for the Riyadh strike, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree drew attention to a previous post from the prior day. In that message, Saree stated that only pre-approved humanitarian flights would be permitted to land at Riyadh airport, later retweeting the declaration with the caption “A reminder.”
US President Donald Trump addressed the attack during a briefing at the White House, indicating that Washington was evaluating whether to participate in Saudi strikes against the Houthis. “We may. We’re going to look at it,” Trump said. “We just found out about the recent attack, so we’ll make a decision. We move very quickly.”
The assault comes amid intensifying fighting between Houthi rebels and the Yemeni government backed by Saudi forces. Earlier this week, Houthi-linked strikes on the same Riyadh airport killed four people, injured several others, and damaged aircraft. The group seized strategic locations along Yemen’s Red Sea coast last month, prompting the Saudi-led coalition to provide air support for government counter-offensives near the Bab al-Mandab strait.
The conflict escalated after a peace agreement collapsed in July. In response to Houthi advances, the Saudi-backed Yemeni government announced a counter-offensive the previous week aimed at reclaiming territories held by the rebels.
In the wake of the violence, major carriers including Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways, and Kuwait Airways canceled multiple flights to and from Riyadh, with disruptions expected to continue into Monday. Several airlines have also suspended operations in the city due to ongoing security concerns.
Flight cancellations are about to get worse. Hopefully travelers have time to rebook before things get worse.
Does anyone know who exactly fired this missile? The Houthis aren’t claiming it yet, which is suspicious.
Another strike on the same airport within days? King Khalid can’t keep absorbing these hits safely.
This is absolutely devastating. The international casualties show how far this conflict has spread beyond Yemen.