Houthi rebel spokesperson Yahya Sarea issues a public statement Sunday (local time) claiming the group carried out four missile and drone strikes against Saudi Arabia. An attack on Riyadh's international airport killed 12 people, including four Saudi nationals, and wounded 309 others. [EPA]
Houthi rebel spokesperson Yahya Sarea issues a public statement Sunday (local time) claiming the group carried out four missile and drone strikes against Saudi Arabia. An attack on Riyadh's international airport killed 12 people, including four Saudi nationals, and wounded 309 others. [EPA]

King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh came under attack again just one day after a missile strike by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels killed 12 people at the same facility.

The Saudi-led coalition said an unidentified projectile hit Terminal 4 of King Khalid International Airport on Sunday (local time), setting off a fire, with local authorities conducting firefighting and recovery operations at the scene. Separately that day, Saudi air defenses detected an incoming cruise missile near the airport and intercepted it.

At least two powerful explosions were heard in central and northern Riyadh during the strikes. The latest attacks came a day after a Houthi missile strike on King Khalid Airport on Sunday (local time) killed 12 civilians — including four Saudi nationals, two Bangladeshis, and nationals of the United States, Egypt and Jordan — and wounded 309 others.

It was the third strike targeting Riyadh's airport within a single week and the deadliest attack on Saudi soil in more than a decade.

Saudi authorities shut down all operations at Riyadh's airport to assess damage and carry out safety evaluations. All in-person classes for students and staff across Riyadh were also suspended from Sunday through Thursday, with schools switching to remote learning on an emergency basis.

The Houthis had earlier posted a warning on X, formerly Twitter, saying that Saudi airports — with the exception of those serving the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina — "have become vulnerable and an operational theater for our forces." The group added that its warnings "must be taken seriously" and that Saudi Arabia bore full responsibility for any failure to defend against further strikes.

The Houthis also claimed that Sanaa International Airport in the Yemeni capital, which they control, had come under another attack by the Saudi-led coalition. Al Masirah TV, a Houthi-run outlet, blamed Saudi Arabia for the strike without providing details on casualties or damage.


kate01@heraldcorp.com