Largest loss of life in the Gulf country since the Iran War... Airport Terminals 3 and 4 facilities attacked
Houthis "retaliation for Saudi airstrikes"... Airport operation suspended, flight cancellations
(Johannesburg/Seoul = Yonhap News) Correspondent Shin Jae-woo, Na Confirmed Correspondent = King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, was attacked again on the 10th (local time), leaving at least 12 people dead and 309 injured.
This attack is believed to be the largest number of casualties among attacks in the Gulf Arab country since the United States and Israel began their war with Iran in February.
As attacks by Houthis, pro-Iran rebels in Yemen, spread throughout Saudi Arabia, with projectiles falling near the international airport in Dammam, eastern Saudi Arabia, U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at the possibility of intervening in the conflict.
According to Reuters, the Saudi Arabian Civil Aviation Authority (GACA) announced that at least 12 people were killed and 309 injured in the attack on King Khalid International Airport on this day.
GACA said the dead included four Saudis, two Bangladeshis, and one each from the United States, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt.
This is at least the third time King Khalid Airport has been attacked since Yemen's pro-Iran rebels Houthis announced a large-scale attack targeting Saudi airports and oil refineries on the 5th.
Sources said the attack occurred without prior warning and no alerts were issued in Saudi Arabia's threat warning system.
A witness at the airport said he saw several people lying injured inside the airport after the explosion occurred. Another injured person said that a portion of the ceiling near the boarding gate collapsed shortly after seeing something flying in the sky outside the airport.
The American daily Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the missile hit the facility where the airport's 3rd and 4th terminals are located.
Muhammad al-Bukaiti, a senior Houthi official, told the New York Times that they were responsible.
He claimed that this attack was retaliation for Saudi airstrikes targeting Yemen's civilian infrastructure, and that it was "to ensure that the world understands that Yemen's airports and ports, wedding halls and funeral halls, hospitals and markets are civilian facilities that should not be attacked or damaged."
GACA temporarily suspended airport operations to inspect the damage and safety of airport facilities.
According to flight tracking site FlightTrader24, all flights heading to Riyadh were diverted to other airports or canceled.
Kuwait Airways, Etihad Airways, and Qatar Airways also canceled their Riyadh routes one after another, and the suspension of some flights is expected to continue until the 12th.
On this day, a projectile fell near the airport in Dammam, a major city in eastern Saudi Arabia.
Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, said through
He also reported that a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis was intercepted and destroyed in the Al Kharji region in central Saudi Arabia.
The Houthi rebels have been continuing missile attacks targeting major Saudi facilities since claiming to have attacked King Khalid Airport, the Aramco oil refinery in the western coastal city of Rabigh, and the southwestern Abha International Airport on the 5th.
On the 6th and 7th, three people were killed and 36 injured in attacks on Riyadh and Abha airports, and on the 8th, two attacks targeting King Khalid Airport killed three people, including a Saudi airline captain.
As Saudi Arabia's air defense network has revealed its vulnerability to successive attacks, attention is also focused on whether the United States will respond militarily.
At a meeting with reporters at the White House on the 10th, President Trump was asked whether the United States plans to join Saudi Arabia's Houthi attack, and said, "It is possible. We will look into it. We have just learned about the recent attack, so we will make a decision. We will respond very quickly."
As the United States carried out large-scale airstrikes against the Houthis last year, attention is being paid to the possibility that this situation could expand into direct military intervention by the United States.
As the Houthis' offensive intensifies, there are concerns that large-scale international events scheduled in Saudi Arabia may be disrupted.
The World Petroleum Congress (WPC) energy general meeting, attended by global energy industry officials, will be held in Riyadh starting on the 11th, and the Future Investment Initiative (FII), a large-scale international investment event led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled for the end of this month.
Event organizers say they will proceed with the event as scheduled, but difficulties are expected in the movement and safety of participants due to flight disruptions and the possibility of additional attacks.
On the 4th, the Saudi-led coalition and Yemeni government forces declared the launch of Operation 'Dawn of Yemen' to recapture Yemeni territory controlled by the Houthis, and began to recapture key bases in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait area, which connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis are engaging the Yemeni government forces on the ground while simultaneously counterattacking with ballistic missiles targeting the Saudi mainland, which provides air support to the Yemeni forces.
