Attack on Saudi airport leaves 12 dead, dozens wounded

Riyadh Airport Attack Kills 12 as Flights Are Diverted

Earthguardiansonline.com – A strike on Riyadh’s international airport on Saturday killed 12 people and injured dozens more, marking the third attack on the Saudi capital’s main airport this week. The incident forced a temporary shutdown of operations at the kingdom’s busiest aviation hub, while international flights were canceled or rerouted and several Western embassies urged their citizens to stay away from the area.

The death toll was shared by three people familiar with the situation, including two Western officials. They cautioned that the number could change as emergency teams continued treating victims, some of whom were in critical condition. Saudi authorities had not released an official count by Saturday, and the government’s media office did not immediately answer questions about the attack or casualties.

The strike came without an alert from Saudi Arabia’s threat-warning system. Ambulances and helicopters transferred injured people to hospitals after the blast, which disrupted activity at an airport serving a metropolitan area of roughly 8 million residents.

Witnesses describe damage inside terminal

One person at the airport described seeing an explosion before noticing several injured people on the ground inside the facility. More than a dozen ambulances were seen heading toward the airport. Footage showing ambulances at the scene was verified by Reuters.

An injured traveler said an object appeared to cross the sky outside the airport before part of the ceiling near a departure gate gave way. The account underscored the danger faced by travelers and airport personnel during an attack that struck a major civilian transport center without warning.

Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said airport operations had been temporarily suspended. Flight-tracking information showed incoming flights either being diverted or canceled, and at one point only a helicopter was visible above the airport.

Kuwait Airways canceled services to and from Riyadh, citing the airport closure and the security situation. Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways had already canceled several routes connecting their hubs with the Saudi capital, with some cancellations scheduled to continue into Monday.

Houthis had claimed responsibility for earlier strikes

No group immediately took responsibility for Saturday’s attack. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement, however, has increased missile strikes against Saudi Arabia and claimed responsibility for the two earlier airport attacks this week.

After the latest strike, the Houthi military spokesperson reshared a message posted before the incident. It stated that only humanitarian flights with prior approval could land at Riyadh airport and ended with the words:

“a reminder.”

Earlier Houthi attacks this week killed four people and caused major damage to a Saudi commercial aircraft. The repeated strikes have drawn attention to pressure on Saudi defenses as the kingdom continues an air campaign against the Houthis in support of Yemeni government forces fighting the group on the ground.

The Houthis have also declared Saudi airspace a military operations zone and said commercial aircraft should avoid it. That warning followed an offensive launched earlier this month by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government against the movement.

Embassies issue security warnings

The United States Embassy in Riyadh said it knew of attacks in the area and advised Americans to avoid the airport and nearby locations.

“strongly recommends all US citizens avoid this airport and surrounding areas.”

The British and Irish embassies said they were aware of a serious incident at the airport. Canada’s embassy said continuing military activity had affected airport operations.

The disruption comes shortly before Riyadh is set to host major energy and investment conferences. Organizers said Saturday that the events would proceed and sought to reassure participants about security arrangements.

Conflict pressures extend beyond the Saudi capital

The airport attacks are unfolding alongside wider military developments in Yemen. Forces backed by Riyadh have faced setbacks as the Houthis tightened their siege of Taiz, Yemen’s third-largest city.

Saudi and Yemeni authorities also said they had retaken Bab el-Mandeb, the strategically important maritime chokepoint that the Houthis seized in a rapid offensive last month. Control of the passage has significance beyond Yemen because it links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and is a key route for international shipping.

US President Donald Trump said Washington was considering whether to join Saudi strikes against the Houthis. Speaking outside the White House after learning of the latest attack, he said:

“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.”

For travelers, the immediate consequences included canceled flights, diverted aircraft and uncertainty over when normal services at Riyadh airport would resume. For Saudi Arabia, the attack added to a week of violence that has brought the Yemen conflict directly into one of the country’s most important civilian and commercial centers.