Yemen’s Houthi movement launched two missiles targeting Riyadh’s airport, setting off explosions across the Saudi capital and causing severe damage to aircraft on the ground, detikNews reported on October 9, 2026.
Missiles Strike Riyadh Airport and Leave Aircraft Heavily Damaged
Yahya Saree, the military spokesperson for the Houthi movement, announced that the group launched two missiles at the Riyadh airport, alongside an additional missile targeting an airport in Najran and another aimed at an air base in Khamis Mushait. Witnesses inside the Saudi capital reported hearing a series of loud blasts on Thursday afternoon, prompting foreign diplomatic missions and international schools to take immediate precautionary measures. One international school evacuated students to its basement for safety, while businesses in the King Abdullah Financial District directed staff away from exposed work areas, according to Agence France-Presse reports cited by CNBC Indonesia.
Damage assessments from the ground revealed starkly differing figures regarding the scale of the destruction at Riyadh’s main aviation hub. One source told detikNews that at least one aircraft sustained severe damage, while a second source maintained that three separate planes were struck during the barrage. The strikes followed an official statement from Saudi civil aviation authorities detailing that the Abha International Airport and King Khalid International Airport were targeted on Tuesday and Wednesday. Those earlier bombardments killed three foreign nationals—including citizens from Egypt, Algeria, and Sudan—across both facilities and injured 36 people.
Yemeni Government Condemns Aden Airport Attack as Humanitarian Law Violation
While the Houthi movement targeted installations inside the kingdom, the Yemeni government accused the group of carrying out a dangerous escalation at home. The Ministry of Foreign and Expatriates of Yemen issued a severe condemnation on Wednesday regarding a strike involving two ballistic missiles and a drone directed at Aden International Airport as a civilian aircraft prepared to land, according to ANTARA News reporting. The ministry stated that passengers, staff, and a second civilian plane were present at the facility during the attack, though officials did not immediately release casualty figures for the Aden incident.
The renewed military campaign marks a sharp breakdown of the relative calm established by a 2022 truce. The broader conflict began in 2014 when the Houthi movement seized the capital city of Sanaa, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene the following year to restore the internationally recognized government. Fighting subsided significantly for several years until July 2026, when cross-border violence resumed following Saudi airstrikes in Sanaa and subsequent Houthi assaults on energy installations, military sites, and Red Sea shipping lanes.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Saudi-Yemeni Border Escalation
Which airports and military sites were hit in the latest Houthi strikes?
The Houthi movement targeted the airport in Riyadh, the airport in Najran, and an air base in Khamis Mushait on Thursday, following previous strikes on Abha International Airport and Aden International Airport earlier in the week, according to reports from detikNews and ANTARA News.
How many casualties have been officially confirmed from the attacks?
Saudi aviation authorities reported that three foreign nationals—from Egypt, Algeria, and Sudan—were killed, and 36 individuals sustained injuries during the attacks on the Abha and Riyadh airports on Tuesday and Wednesday, as noted by CNBC Indonesia.
What triggered the breakdown of the 2022 ceasefire between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition?
Hostilities resumed in July 2026 after a series of clashes sparked by Houthi attacks in Al-Jawf, subsequent Saudi airstrikes on Sanaa, and Houthi drone and missile campaigns targeting Saudi energy infrastructure and shipping lanes in the Red Sea.
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