A Pakistani national was killed and 11 other people were injured when a fresh Houthi strike hit Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Sunday, Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said, in the second deadly attack on the facility in as many days.
The Houthis claimed a wave of attacks over the preceding 24 hours, including on the airport, and warned airlines that Saudi transit hubs had become “a theatre of operations for our forces”. The Saudi-led coalition said a projectile struck the airport and sparked a fire, adding that air defences had intercepted a cruise missile in the vicinity.
The attack extended the suspension of operations at the airport, with the closure now stretched by another 24 hours until 2100 GMT on Monday, according to flight-tracking data. Multiple explosions were heard across the Saudi capital; a resident of the Al-Aarid district said the whole house shook after the blast.
The aviation authority also reported an attack on Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport in the east, which the Houthis likewise claimed. The coalition said it shot down a drone in the east and, early on Monday, announced it had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile heading for the southern city of Khamis Mushait, home to a major military base.
Pakistan strongly condemned the assault. The Foreign Office called the targeting of a civilian airport a “heinous act of terrorism” and a flagrant violation of international law, reaffirming Islamabad’s firm commitment to Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and security under the Makkah Agreement for Joint Defence.
The strike came a day after Saturday’s missile attack on the same airport — the deadliest on Saudi soil in more than a decade — which killed more than a dozen people and wounded over 300, including Umrah pilgrims. Iran’s foreign minister said Tehran was ready to help initiate dialogue between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, warning that a military-only approach would further complicate the situation. The US, Canadian, German and Spanish embassies have meanwhile urged their citizens to avoid the airport and its surroundings.
