Several Injured As Houthis Hit Saudi Airport Again, Flights Suspended
Several persons were injured on Saturday after a fresh attack on the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi capital, forcing authorities to suspend operations at the facility.
According to Aljazeera, the General Authority of Civil Aviation, GACA, in Saudi Arabia confirmed the attack, saying officials were assessing the damage and determining the exact number of casualties.
This is coming barely two days after at least three Saudi citizens, including a pilot, were killed in similar Houthi attacks on the same airport on Thursday.
The attack was believed to have been launched by Yemen’s Houthi group, which is at war with Riyadh and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government in Aden.
According to Al Jazeera, the Houthis have yet to claim responsibility for the latest attack, but the Iran-backed group had earlier warned aviation companies to avoid Saudi airspace, saying any aircraft operating there – except over Mecca and Medina – is a target.
Earlier on Saturday, the management of King Khalid airport had urged passengers to contact their airlines and check their flight status before heading to the airport following disruptions to air traffic.
The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs also instructed Saudi citizens travelling to the kingdom to contact local embassies if their travel plans were disrupted.
Reacting to the attack, President Donald Trump told reporters outside the White House that the United States may join Saudi strikes against the Houthis.
“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,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, foreign embassies in Riyadh, including those of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada, have issued advisories to their citizens to avoid the airport and surrounding areas.
The US mission said it was aware of the attacks and strongly recommended all US citizens avoid the airport, while the British and Irish embassies described it as a “serious incident.”
Qatar, Jordan and Oman have condemned the attack, with Qatar describing it as a direct threat to regional security.
Kuwait Airways announced cancellation of flights to Riyadh, citing closure of the airport due to a “security situation.”
The Houthis had on Thursday claimed to have launched a ballistic missile towards the airport, saying it hit its target and disrupted air traffic. Days earlier, similar attacks on Abha and King Khalid airports killed three civilians and injured 36 others.
