Large plume of black smoke rises from the fuel storage depot at King Khalid International Airport, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Photo: Reuters
Yemen’s Houthi group said on Wednesday that it had hit the main airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh with a ballistic missile.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group’s forces struck King Khalid International Airport “with a ballistic missile, scoring a precise and direct hit.”
Saree did not specify when the attack took place or provide details of possible casualties or damage.
تمكنت قواتنا المسلحة بفضل الله وعونه من استهداف مطار خالد الدولي في عاصمة العدو السعودي الرياض بصاروخ باليستي وكانت الإصابة دقيقة ومباشرة.
وفي سياق آخر نفذت قواتنا المسلحة عملية استهداف لعدد من تحشيدات العدو السعودي في منطقة رأس العارة والمضاربة بثلاثة صواريخ بالستية وكانت…
— العميد/ يحيى سريع (@Yah_Saree) October 14, 2026
The announcement follows 10 attacks on five Saudi airports on October 5-11 that killed 20 people and injured hundreds, while causing property damage and disrupting flights, according to an Anadolu tally based on official statements.
King Khalid International Airport was the most frequently targeted, with five attacks killing 18 people and injuring hundreds. King Fahd International Airport in the eastern city of Dammam sustained two attacks, while the southern airports of Abha, Jazan, and Najran sustained one apiece.
On Sunday, Saudi authorities said an unidentified projectile struck Terminal 4 at King Khalid Airport, triggering a fire that killed a Pakistani resident and injured 11 others.
An earlier attack on Saturday killed 13 people and injured 309, prompting Saudi authorities to suspend airport operations temporarily. The suspension was extended on Monday.
The Saudi Civil Aviation Authority did not identify those responsible for the attacks on the five airports.
However, the Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen’s government accused the Houthis of carrying out some of them. The group has also claimed responsibility for attacks on sites inside Saudi Arabia, including airports.
Yemeni army claims 1,250 Houthis ‘neutralised’ in ‘Dawn of Yemen’ operation
Yemeni government forces said on Wednesday that 1,250 Houthi fighters had been “neutralised” during the “Dawn of Yemen” military operation on several fronts.
Yemeni Armed Forces spokesman Majed Abdullah al-Nazili said in a statement that government forces conducted 2,309 “precise and direct” strikes using warplanes, drones, field artillery, rocket launchers and sniper units.
He claimed the operations disrupted Houthi defensive lines, command-and-control centres, frontline positions and supply routes, allowing government forces to advance.
The spokesman said more than 460 military vehicles and other pieces of equipment had also been destroyed or damaged.
Yemen’s armed forces say they carried out 2,309 precision targeting strikes under the “Dawn of Yemen” operation, neutralizing around 1,250 Houthi fighters and destroying or disabling more than 460 of their military vehicles. pic.twitter.com/HaK7ps7QKr
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) October 14, 2026
In the southwestern province of Taiz, government forces continued airstrikes and ambush operations targeting Houthi forces and reinforcements, according to the statement.
Al-Nazili urged residents in Houthi-controlled areas to keep their children away from recruitment campaigns and military positions, and reiterated an amnesty by Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad al-Alimi to fighters who lay down their weapons.
He also accused the Houthis of targeting civilian infrastructure and residential neighbourhoods in Taiz.
The Yemeni army also said it captured five Houthi commanders west of Taiz province, including senior commander Akram Amer, who holds the rank of major general.
Yemen’s Houthis vow more attacks on Saudi airports, oil facilities after Aramco HQ hit
Yemen’s Houthis vowed on Wednesday to press on with attacks on airports and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia and said they struck the headquarters of oil giant Saudi Aramco, which was hit the day before.
The Iran-aligned group said it had launched ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones at Saudi Aramco facilities in the eastern city of Dhahran, King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and an Aramco refinery in Riyadh, without saying when.
Saudi Arabia has faced widening Houthi strikes over the past week, including an attack on Riyadh airport on Saturday that killed 13 people.
Read: Saudi-led coalition says Houthi ballistic missile intercepted over Riyadh
The Houthis say they have been retaliating for the kingdom’s backing of Yemeni government forces in the Yemen war that restarted last month, reignited by the US-Iran confrontation in the Gulf.
Saudi-led forces say they intercepted missile
In a broad threat, the Houthis urged “international shipping companies”, civilians and workers to evacuate airports and oil facilities, which they declared legitimate military targets.
The Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis towards Riyadh on Wednesday, and several loud booms were heard in the Saudi capital.
Saudi authorities earlier issued an alert for a possible aerial threat in Riyadh on Wednesday before the warning was lifted, a witness said. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the booms and there was no immediate comment from the authorities on their source.
The escalating conflict has dealt a blow to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s ambitious plans to transform and diversify the Saudi economy and reduce its reliance on oil.
The Saudi Energy Ministry said Tuesday’s attack on the headquarters of Saudi Aramco had caused a limited fire and no injuries or deaths.
The Dhahran complex hosts a major operations centre for Aramco, which oversees a vast network of onshore and offshore oil rigs, pipelines, refineries and export terminals.
A company source told Reuters earlier that a ballistic missile hit the Aramco headquarters complex. The source said an office tower in the complex was struck and that its top three floors were damaged.
Riyadh’s international airport has come under attack four times, including Saturday’s attack which was the deadliest in Saudi Arabia in a decade. Authorities have closed the airport until October 17, and airlines have cancelled flights to Saudi Arabia.
Fearing the rise of Iranian influence and the prospect of chaos on its borders, Saudi Arabia intervened in Yemen’s civil war in support of the government in 2015 after the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa.
The UN brokered a 2022 truce between the warring sides in Yemen that kept a fragile peace until this year.
The coalition said in a statement on Tuesday evening that it attacked the station and other sites in an operation aimed at “neutralising the capabilities of Houthis” to threaten Saudi Arabia, Yemen and international waterways.
The Saudi cabinet, chaired by de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, issued a statement on Tuesday before the strike on Saudi Aramco saying the Houthis would face consequences for their repeated attacks on the kingdom.
South Korea condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia’s civilian, economic facilities
South Korea on Wednesday condemned Houthi attacks on key civilian and economic facilities in Saudi Arabia, including King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and Saudi Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran, which resulted in civilian casualties.
“Attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure can never be tolerated, and such attacks must cease immediately,” Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said on the US social media company X.
The remarks came amid escalating Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, including repeated strikes on airports and energy sites.
