Missile Strike Reported at Riyadh Airport as Yemen War Fight Over Key Strait Escalates

Yemen's Houthi rebels are reported to have fired a missile at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport on Saturday, leaving dozens injured and halting flights, according to Euronews and The Guardian. Saudi authorities have not confirmed a new attack or an evacuation.

The strike came as Yemen's war widened. The Houthis and forces allied with the Saudi-backed Yemeni government are giving sharply different accounts of a battle for the Bab al-Mandab strait, a key shipping chokepoint.

What was reported at the airport

A diplomatic source told Euronews the airport was hit by a missile attributed to the Houthis. A hospital source in the Saudi capital told Agence France-Presse that dozens of people were hurt, most of them Saudi nationals, and that at least five were in intensive care. The Guardian cited the same hospital source. It also reported that the relative of one wounded person said shattered glass had injured the person's shoulders and arms.

Witnesses said passengers were being evacuated. One described hearing an explosion while waiting to board. Another, at the domestic terminal, said they saw a nearby gate struck and people wounded. "Everyone was running," the witness said.

The U.S., Canadian, German and Spanish embassies told citizens to avoid the airport, Euronews reported. Flightradar24 showed all flights to Riyadh diverted or canceled. Kuwait Airways canceled flights KU775 and KU776, citing the closure of the airport because of the security situation.

Reports differ on the toll from Thursday's attacks. Euronews said three Saudi citizens were killed. The Guardian said the airport had been attacked twice this week, leaving four dead and an aircraft badly damaged.

What the Houthi side says about the fighting

A Houthi spokesperson said government forces based in Aden were hit with a large number of ballistic missiles, artillery and heavy weapons. The spokesperson claimed more than 22 armored vehicles were destroyed and that dozens of fighters, including commanders, were killed or wounded. The spokesperson also said more than 30 ambulances arrived in Aden to carry away casualties.

The Guardian reported that the Houthis seized the strait two weeks ago and declared that no Saudi-linked commercial shipping would pass through it. The group says it is fighting to end Saudi influence in Yemen and has launched missile attacks on Riyadh in pursuit of that aim. It had also warned global airlines of possible consequences for operating in Saudi airspace.

What the Saudi-backed side says

Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed al-Jaber, declared the strait cleared of Houthi remnants. Aidarous al-Zubaidi, president of the Southern Transitional Council, claimed Perim Island and the surrounding coast had been retaken.

A military spokesperson for the UN-recognized government, Waddah al-Dabish, gave a more cautious account. He said only half of the area had been recaptured so far. He said new Houthi defensive lines near the strait had been broken and that thousands of Houthi fighters had died. The Guardian noted that accounts vary on whether the push has been repelled, and that earlier claims of breakthroughs this week proved premature.

Why it matters for travelers and shipping

Air travel to and from the Saudi capital is disrupted. Air India, FlyDubai, Lufthansa Group and Pakistan International Airlines had already suspended Saudi flights after Thursday's attack, according to Euronews. With embassies warning citizens away from the airport and all Riyadh flights diverted or canceled, anyone booked on a route through the city faces uncertainty.

The strait matters beyond Yemen. The Guardian described Perim Island, which covers 5 sq miles (13 sq km), as a lookout over traffic moving from the Red Sea toward the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It also said that Western governments badly need the area recaptured.

What's at stake in the wider war

Hans Grundberg, the UN special envoy to Yemen, told the Security Council that the country had slipped back into full-scale war and that women and children would be the first victims, the Guardian reported. The truce between the Houthis and the Riyadh-backed government unraveled in July. Since then, Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers have been repeatedly targeted.

The Guardian said Saudi Arabia launched a land counteroffensive at the start of the week and is eager to show the strait has been reclaimed. As of Saturday, neither side's battlefield claims had been independently verified, according to the reports.

Sources: Euronews, The Guardian