Multiple Injuries Reported Following New Attack on Riyadh Airport

Several individuals have sustained injuries following the latest attack on King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, according to the country's Civil Aviation Authority. The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) announced that airport operations were temporarily suspended following Saturday afternoon's incident, while officials work to assess the damage and confirm the exact casualty figures.

This follows an incident on Thursday when GACA reported that at least three Saudi citizens, including a pilot, lost their lives in Houthi attacks at the facility. These strikes were initiated by Yemen’s Houthi movement, which remains engaged in a conflict with Riyadh and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government based in Aden.

Reporting from Yemen on Saturday, Al Jazeera’s Yousef Mawry noted that the Houthis have not yet formally claimed responsibility for this most recent strike. Nevertheless, the Iran-backed faction has previously cautioned aviation companies against utilizing Saudi airspace, declaring any operating aircraft—excluding those over the holy cities of Mecca and Medina—to be legitimate targets.

Earlier on Saturday, amid initial reports of air traffic disruptions, King Khalid airport advised passengers to reach out directly to their airlines to verify flight statuses before traveling to the facility. The airport's initial advisory did not explicitly state the reason behind the disruptions. Additionally, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs advised Saudi citizens traveling domestically to connect with local embassies if their travel plans were affected by the incident.

Following news of the attack, President Donald Trump was questioned outside the White House regarding whether the United States intended to participate in Saudi retaliatory strikes against the Houthis. "We may. We’re going to look at it. We just found out about the ⁠⁠⁠⁠recent attack, so we’ll make a decision. We move very quickly," he stated.

Concurrently, foreign diplomatic missions in Riyadh—including those representing the US, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Canada—issued social media advisories urging caution for their nationals in the kingdom. The US mission stated it was "aware of attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh" and "strongly recommends" that all US citizens steer clear of the airport and surrounding sectors. Similarly, the British and Irish embassies alerted their citizens to "a serious incident" at the location, while Canada’s embassy advised nationals in Riyadh to avoid all travel to the airport due to "ongoing military activity." Japan’s embassy issued a "strong" condemnation of Houthi attacks targeting airports and other Saudi civilian infrastructure, and Kuwait Airways announced flight cancellations resulting from the airport closure prompted by the "security situation."

Earlier in the week, a Houthi military spokesperson stated that the Yemeni armed group had fired a ballistic missile toward the Riyadh airport, asserting the projectile successfully struck its intended target, causing damage and air traffic disruption. These events follow prior alleged Houthi attacks on Abha and King Khalid airports that resulted in three civilian fatalities and 36 injuries.