Deadliest Attack on Riyadh Airport Kills 12, Including American Citizen

At least 12 individuals were killed and 309 injured during a missile strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Saturday, according to Saudi officials. Among the deceased is one American citizen, alongside four Saudis, two Bangladeshis, and citizens from Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Palestine, and Sudan.

The attack, identified as the deadliest incident in any Gulf Arab nation since the onset of the Iran war, targeted a complex housing terminals 3 and 4 for domestic flights. Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation confirmed that victims are being treated across multiple hospitals, with several patients listed in critical condition.

A Saudi-led coalition operating in Yemen attributed the assault to Houthi rebels. This marks the latest in a series of strikes on the capital’s airport over the past week, following a major military offensive launched by the coalition against Houthi forces earlier in the week.

President Donald Trump stated on Saturday that he is considering whether the United States should join Saudi strikes against the Houthis. “We may. We’re gonna look at it,” Trump told reporters. “We just found out about the recent attack [on the airport]. So we’ll make a decision — we move very quickly.”

State Secretary Marco Rubio strongly condemned the attack, calling it the work of “terrorist Houthis” and noting the killing of an American citizen. A State Department spokesperson added that the Trump administration remains in close contact with its Saudi partners.

The Houthis have not yet claimed responsibility for Saturday’s strike, though they claimed responsibility for earlier attacks in the week that killed three Saudis, including a pilot. In a reciprocal accusation, the rebels charged Saudi Arabia with striking Sanaa International Airport in the Houthi-held Yemeni capital earlier on Saturday.

Hans Grundberg, the United Nations special envoy to Yemen, labeled the strike a “dangerous escalation” that poses a grave threat to regional security. Following the attack, Saudi civil aviation authorities suspended airport operations through midnight, blocking all entrances and dimming perimeter lights.

The surge in attacks has disrupted global travel and rattled markets. At least 291 flights were canceled at Riyadh’s airport within 24 hours, and major carriers including Air India, FlyDubai, Lufthansa, and Pakistan International Airlines had already suspended services to Saudi airports. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency expanded its warnings regarding Saudi airspace, citing the heightened risk of misidentifying civil aircraft amid missile and drone interceptions.

Despite the violence, Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry continued to promote a major international energy conference scheduled to begin in Riyadh on Sunday. The conflict has intensified fighting along the Red Sea, where Houthi gains have improved their surveillance of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a critical shipping corridor alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has also been targeting vessels.