World condemns deadly Houthi attack on Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh airport

Saudi Arabia has accused Yemen’s Houthis of killing at least 12 people and wounding 300 others in a third attack on the Riyadh International Airport this week.

The victims on Saturday included four Saudis, two people from ⁠Bangladesh and one person each from the United States, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt, the Saudi civil aviation authority said.

The attack was the deadliest in the kingdom in more than a decade.

It came as the war in Yemen intensifies, with the Houthis battling forces aligned with the internationally recognised government for control of the country. Saudi Arabia is waging an air campaign against the Houthis to support the ground war by the Yemeni government against the Iran-backed group.

Here’s a round of the global reaction:

United States

US President Donald Trump described the attack as “terrible” and said he “will be speaking” with Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, soon. He also said he was evaluating whether the US should join the war against the Houthis.

“We may. We’re gonna look at it. We just found out about the recent attack, so we’ll make a decision. We’ll move very quickly,” he said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, meanwhile, said the Houthi attack killed an American and called for an end to “these reprehensible attacks”.

“We stand with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its people and extend our condolences to the victims and their families,” he wrote on X.

United Nations

Hans Grundberg, the UN special envoy for Yemen, said the deadly strikes on civilian airports in Saudi Arabia represent “a grave escalation”.

“Such actions pose a serious threat to regional security, perpetuate cycles of violence and complicate even more peace efforts for Yemen,” he said in a statement.

Egypt

The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its “strong condemnation” of the Houthi attacks, denouncing their “flagrant violation” of international law, and the “disregard” for the safety of citizens that they entail.

Qatar

Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the Houthi attacks, describing them as a “serious violation of Saudi sovereignty and a direct threat to the security of the region, the safety of civilians, civil facilities and air navigation”.

It expressed its full solidarity with Saudi Arabia and said Doha supported “all legitimate measures” the kingdom “takes to preserve its sovereignty, security and safety of its territories”.

Palestine

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared “its full solidarity with the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” and said it supported “all measures taken by the Kingdom to safeguard its security, sovereignty, and the safety of its citizens and residents”.

Japan

Japan’s embassy in Saudi Arabia strongly condemned the repeated attacks by the Houthis, saying assaults on civilians “cannot be tolerated” under any circumstances.