Houthi missile attack on Riyadh airport again

Yemen's Houthi group has claimed it fired a ballistic missile at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, once again.

In a statement posted on X on Wednesday (October 14), the group's military spokesman, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, made the claim.

In the statement, Brig. Gen. Saree said the missile struck its target precisely and disrupted air traffic at the airport. He did not say exactly when the attack took place, whether anyone was hurt, or how much damage was caused. The Houthi claim could not be independently verified. The same day, the group also reported an attack on an area near the airport in Aden, the capital of Yemen's interim government.

Saudi airports have been under Houthi fire since the start of this month. According to Saudi authorities, attacks on October 6 and 7 killed three people and injured 36 at Abha and King Khalid airports. The dead included a Sudanese national and two residents from Morocco and Algeria.

The deadliest attack came on Saturday, October 10. Media outlets reported that at least 13 people were killed and more than 300 injured at Riyadh airport. The Saudi civil aviation authority put the number of injured at 309. It is the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade. After the incident, airport operations were suspended and all flights were diverted elsewhere.

The next day, Sunday, a projectile struck Terminal 4 of the airport again. A fire broke out, killing a Pakistani national and injuring 11 others. Authorities then announced that the airport would remain closed until further notice. On October 12, the Saudi-led coalition said it had shot down three missiles fired toward Riyadh.

Following the attacks, two regional officials told the Associated Press, on condition of anonymity, that Saudi Arabia has opened an investigation. It is looking into how missiles and drones travelled more than 1,000 kilometers to reach Riyadh, and why the air defense system failed to give early warning.

The Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen's government has been fighting the Houthis since 2015. The Houthis have controlled much of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, since 2014. The conflict between the two sides has escalated again since July. An attack in the Riyadh airport area also occurred in September. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 200,000 people have been displaced in Yemen by the recent fighting.