Saudi authorities said Friday that Thursday's strikes on Riyadh airport killed three people, damaged a Saudia aircraft and disrupted flights before traffic returned to normal.
Saudi authorities said on Friday that attacks on Riyadh's international airport on Thursday killed three people and injured several others, Reuters reported. The strikes damaged a Saudia aircraft and sent smoke over the airport, prompting many airlines to cancel flights to the capital.
BBC, citing the General Authority of Civil Aviation, said the first strike targeted the airport and a second hit a Saudia aircraft. The airline said one of those killed was a Saudia employee; BBC reported the airline identified a pilot among the dead. The civil aviation authority said air traffic had returned to normal, and Reuters cited Flightradar24 showing a gradual resumption of flights.
Yemen's Houthi group said it had fired two missiles at the airport, according to reports cited by BBC. The group also claimed strikes on Najran airport and Khamis Mushait air base; Saudi Arabia had not confirmed those claims in the BBC account. A Saudi-led coalition said it had destroyed three Houthi missile launch platforms and warned it would respond to attacks on civilians, Reuters reported.
The deaths follow three people killed in Houthi strikes on Saudi airports on 6 and 7 October, BBC said, including an attack at Abha that the civil aviation body said killed two and wounded 28. Reuters described the Riyadh strikes as part of a wider escalation tied to the US-Iran conflict, with fighting also intensifying around Taiz in Yemen.
The airport is due to receive visitors for a meeting of global oil executives in the coming days. These accounts are official and group claims, not an independent forensic report on the munitions.
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- The Saudi civil aviation authority said the attacks injured Saudi citizens and residents of various nationalities.
- Saudia said one of those killed was an employee.
- The Houthis said they targeted the airport with two missiles.