The Houthis, an extremist group in Yemen, issued a risk warning for further attacks on Saudi Arabian airports and asked airlines, travelers and employees to stay away.
The statement was made via social media this Sunday (11), one day after an attack on Riyadh's international airport left 12 people dead and more than 300 injured.
"We reiterate our warning to all airlines, experts, employees, workers and travelers against using Saudi airports and airspace, as they are vulnerable to attacks and have become targets of operations for our forces, with the exception of airports in Mecca and Medina (holy cities). We urge everyone to take our warnings seriously, and Saudi Arabia is responsible for any unsuccessful interceptions," the post reads.
Attack was the deadliest in a decade
This Saturday's attack occurred around 3 pm local time, without Saudi Arabia's threat alert system issuing any warning, according to the information released.
It was the deadliest of its kind in the kingdom in more than a decade and comes amid an escalation in fighting between the Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi Arabia-backed Yemeni government forces.
The Houthis claimed responsibility for the bombing. According to the American newspaper The New York Times, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, one of the main officials of the Yemeni rebel group, stated that the offensive was in retaliation for the bombings carried out by Saudi Arabia against Yemeni territory.
A witness told Reuters he saw the explosion and then several injured people lying on the ground inside the airport. More than a dozen ambulances were seen heading to the scene.
Airport operations had to be temporarily suspended.
Flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed that all flights bound for Riyadh had been diverted or cancelled. At one point, only one helicopter was flying over the airport.
Kuwait Airways announced the cancellation of flights to the Saudi capital due to the security situation. Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways also suspended travel, some of them until Monday (12).
The embassies of the United States, United Kingdom, Spain and Germany advised their citizens to avoid the airport. The Spanish representation also recommended avoiding non-essential travel, while Germany advised its citizens not to use the terminal until further notice.
The American embassy also informed that United States government employees working in Saudi Arabia need special authorization to use the airport. Canada also warned that operations were being affected by military activity in the region.
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, stated that his government is considering participating in the Saudi bombings against the Houthis.
"Maybe. We'll look into it. We just learned about the most recent attack, so we'll make a decision. We acted very quickly," Trump told reporters at the White House.
Third attack in a week
King Khalid airport had already been the target of an attack this Thursday (8), when an extensive column of smoke was seen over the location and a commercial plane from the state-owned company Saudi Arabian Airlines was seriously damaged.
In claiming the previous attacks, the Houthis warned that commercial aircraft should avoid Saudi airspace, which the group has declared a military operations zone.
After Saturday's attack, the Houthis' military spokesman republished a previous message in which he stated that only previously authorized humanitarian flights could land in Riyadh. In the publication, he only added the expression “a reminder”.
The sequence of attacks comes amid the intensification of the conflict in Yemen. In early October, Yemeni government forces backed by Saudi Arabia launched a military operation against the Houthis.
Since then, the rebel group has intensified missile attacks against Saudi territory, while Saudi Arabia has carried out bombings against Houthi positions in Yemen.
The rebels also tightened their siege on the city of Taiz, the third largest in the country. At the same time, Saudi and Yemeni officials said they had regained control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic sea passage that had been occupied by the Houthis last month.
The attacks on the airport come on the eve of important international conferences on energy and investment scheduled for Riyadh. Despite security threats, organizers said this Saturday that the events will go ahead.
