Published : 11 Oct 2026, 05:18 PM
Updated : 11 Oct 2026, 05:19 PM
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis on Sunday urged airlines, travellers and airport workers to avoid Saudi airports, a day after an attack on Riyadh's international airport killed 12 people and wounded more than 300.
In a post on X, the Houthis warned that Saudi airports and airspace remained vulnerable to attacks, exempting airports in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. They also said Saudi Arabia would bear responsibility for any failed interceptions.
The warning came amid escalating fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces. Saudi Arabia has increased its military involvement in Yemen, launching strikes and backing a government counteroffensive after the Houthis seized strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month.
US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Washington was considering joining Saudi strikes against the Houthis, in a conflict linked to the wider war on Iran launched by the US and Israel in February.
The Saudi-led coalition said a projectile fell near King Fahd International Airport in Dammam on Saturday, while it reported intercepting a drone in the region on Sunday.
The attack on Riyadh airport was the third in a week and the deadliest such incident in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade. The 12 people killed included four Saudis, two Bangladeshis and nationals of the US, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt, Saudi authorities said.
Saudi Arabia's civil aviation authority temporarily suspended operations at King Khalid International Airport pending damage and safety assessments. It did not say when flights would resume.
Despite the attack, a five-day WPC Energy Congress opened in Riyadh on Sunday. Saudi state television said more than 70 ministers, 300 company executives and representatives of over 25 international energy organisations had confirmed their attendance, although it was unclear how many would attend in person.
A ministerial meeting of the International Energy Forum was also scheduled to proceed, with its plenary session held behind closed doors.
Separately, Saudi authorities announced that schools would switch to remote learning from Sunday through Thursday for students, teachers and administrative staff.
Two earlier attacks on Riyadh airport this week killed four people and heavily damaged a Saudi commercial aircraft parked on the tarmac.
