Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid International Airport has been struck for the second time in two days, with the kingdom’s civil aviation authority confirming early on Monday that one person was killed and eleven others were injured in a late-Sunday attack claimed by Yemen’s Houthi movement.
According to the authority’s statement, a Pakistani national died in the strike, which also caused property damage that was still being assessed. The attack came barely a day after a missile slammed into a terminal on Saturday, killing twelve people and injuring more than three hundred in the deadliest attack on Saudi soil in over a decade.
Four attacks claimed in 24 hours
The Houthis said they had carried out four attacks inside Saudi Arabia within a single day, using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones. Alongside the Riyadh airport, the group named King Fahd Airport in Dammam, a gas plant and an oil refinery belonging to the state oil company Aramco as targets. The Saudi-led coalition said air defences had intercepted a cruise missile near the Riyadh airport, a drone over the Eastern Province and a ballistic missile aimed at Khamis Mushait.
The Houthi-run foreign ministry warned airlines, travellers and airport staff to stay away from Saudi airports and airspace, declaring them “legitimate targets” — with the exception of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The group said Saudi Arabia had carried out 124 air strikes across Yemen in the previous 24 hours, including strikes on the capital Sanaa and the group’s stronghold of Saada.
Washington weighs a response
The strikes have piled pressure on Washington. US President Donald Trump told reporters he was considering joining Saudi military action against the Houthis. “We may. We’re going to look at it,” he said, adding that a decision would come quickly.
For now, the airport remains effectively shut. Several carriers have suspended Riyadh services for the coming days, and a string of governments have tightened travel advice, warning citizens to avoid the airport until it is declared secure. With the Houthis vowing worse to come unless Saudi operations in Yemen stop, the region faces its most dangerous aviation crisis in years.
