Saudi Arabia: Second strike kills at least 1 at Riyadh airport

At least one person was killed and 11 others were injured in a strike on Riyadh airport in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, a day after a similar attack killed 12 and injured hundreds.

"King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh was subjected to a new attack on Sunday afternoon," the General Authority of Civil Aviation said in a statement.

It later confirmed that the individual killed in the Sunday attack was a Pakistani national.

A spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said that a cruise missile had been intercepted by air defense systems in the vicinity of the airport, but no further details were immediately available.

The Houthis later claimed responsibility for the strikes, saying they had "carried out four qualitative operations in the past 24 hours using ballistic and cruise missiles and drones."

A spokesman said the group targeted the Riyadh airport multiple times, as well as the Dammam airport in the east of the country and two facilities belonging to the Saudi state oil company Aramco.

Later on Sunday evening, Saudi authorities also confirmed an attack on Dammam airport.

Houthis warn airlines to avoid Saudi Arabia

The latest Houthi strikes also came just hours after the rebel group warned airlines and travelers to avoid Saudi airports.

"We renew our warning to all airlines, experts, employees, workers and travelers against using Saudi airports and airspace, as they are vulnerable to attack and have become a theater of operations for our forces," read a statement released by the group on social media. It added that airports in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina would not be targeted.

"We urge everyone to take our warnings seriously," the statement continued, stating: "Saudi Arabia bears responsibility for any failed interceptions."

Why are Saudi airports being targeted?

Saudi Arabia has stepped up its military involvement in Yemen in recent weeks, launching strikes against the Houthis and backing a Yemeni government counteroffensive after the rebels seized strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month, including around the vital Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The Houthi-run health authority claimed this weekend that 91 Yemenis have been killed by the Saudi-led coalition in the last five weeks, 60% of them women and children. Earlier on Sunday, it said a child was killed and six people wounded in a suspected Saudi airstrike on a house in Sanaa.

The Houthi-run Al Masirah TV also reported that Saudi Arabia had struck the international airport in Sanaa on Sunday afternoon.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi authorities on the claims.

"Unless the Saudi enemy stops its aggression and interference in Yemen, worse is yet to come, God willing," the Houthi-run Foreign Ministry said in statements carried by Al Masirah TV on Sunday, adding that its ​actions would be guided by the principle of reciprocity.

What has Saudi Arabia said about the Riyadh airport attacks?

The Saudi-led coalition, which supports the internationally recognized Yemeni government in its conflict against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, vowed a tough response to the attack, which it labeled a "full-fledged war crime."

The Houthi strikes on Riyadh come amid a surge in Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia this week, which have targeted other airports, military sites and oil infrastructure.

The spike in attacks has followed a major military offensive by the Saudi-led coalition against the Houthis.

The rebels, one of Tehran's regional proxies, have been fighting Yemen's government, which is recognized by the international community, since the outbreak of a civil war over a decade ago.

While a truce in 2022 froze the conflict, it failed to secure a lasting peace deal. The US-Israeli war with Iran has seen fighting flare up again in Yemen, worsening an already severe humanitarian crisis.

How has the international community reacted to the Riyadh strikes?

US President Donald Trump on Saturday said he would be speaking to Saudi Arabia's de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in the wake of the attack, which he said was "not acceptable."

Trump also said that the US was "going to look" at potentially joining Saudi strikes against the rebels.

On Sunday, European leaders expressed their "shock" at the attack on Riyadh airport.

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said the EU stands in "solidarity with Saudi Arabia" as she condemned the "dangerous escalation."

"These attacks by Iran's proxies are pushing the region into a spiral of violence. They are destabilizing crucial global transport and energy nodes with shock waves sent through the world," von der Leyen said.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul "firmly" condemned what he described as "a terrorist act against Saudi Arabia and civil aviation".

"Our thoughts are with the victims and I send my sincere condolences to their loved ones," he said on X.

UK Defense Secretary Wes Streeting slammed the attacks as "contemptible" and a "dangerous escalation," while the French Foreign Ministry condemned the "heinous attack" and stressed its "total solidarity" with Saudi Arabia.

Russia, which is a strategic partner of Iran, also condemned the Houthis' attack and called for the hostilities to end "through political and diplomatic means."

Australia, meanwhile, has urged its citizens in the Saudi capital to "shelter in place" amid the escalating attacks.

Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru, Wesley Rahn