Yemen fighting expands as Houthis attack Saudi airport: What to know

Saudi Arabia has vowed to “firmly” retaliate against an attack on Riyadh’s international airport, which left at least 12 people dead, with US President Donald Trump calling the attack “terrible”.

The Saudi-led military coalition on Sunday blamed Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group for Saturday’s attack on King Khalid International Airport, describing it as a “full-fledged war crime”. The Houthis have not claimed responsibility for the latest strike.

However, on Sunday, the Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, renewed ⁠⁠⁠⁠their warning to ⁠⁠⁠⁠airlines, airport workers, and travellers against using ‌‌‌‌Saudi airports, saying the warning should be taken seriously ⁠⁠⁠⁠and that the ⁠⁠⁠⁠kingdom “bore responsibility for failed interceptions”.

The attack comes amid escalating fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces following the collapse of a UN-brokered ceasefire largely in place since 2022.

The fighting has raised fears of a wider regional confrontation, with the US President suggesting Washington could join Saudi military operations against the Houthis.

Dania Thafer, executive director at the Gulf International Forum, said Saudi Arabia will likely hit back at the Houthis “pretty hard”.

“I still think that the Saudis probably want de-escalation. They don’t want long-term escalation but the Houthis are making it very difficult by not only being a threat to Saudi national security but also a threat to international maritime security,” Thafer said. “So this battle is much bigger than just a tit-for-tat.”

Here is what you need to know:

What happened at Riyadh’s international airport?

According to Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority, the attack struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday. It wounded at least 309 others, some of them critically.

The dead included four Saudi nationals, two Bangladeshis and one citizen each from the US, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Palestine and Sudan. It was the deadliest attack on the Kingdom in more than a decade.

“The cowardly terrorist attack by the Terrorist Houthi Militia … which resulted in deaths and injuries among civilian passengers and airport staff, constitutes a full-fledged war crime,” coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Malki said in a statement on X.

The Houthis, who have yet to take responsibility for the attack, said on Sunday that they “renew their warning to all aviation companies, experts, employees, workers, and travellers against using Saudi airports and airspace, because they are exposed to targeting and are a theatre of operations by our forces”.

“They urge everyone to take our warnings seriously, and Saudi Arabia bears responsibility for any failed interceptions,” military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a post on X.

Airport operations were suspended, with flights cancelled or diverted. Schools across Riyadh were also ordered to switch to remote learning for a week following the attack.

The attacks have disrupted international flights, with several airlines suspending services to Saudi destinations. Later on Saturday, the Saudi-led coalition said a projectile had fallen near King Fahd International Airport in Dammam in the country’s east.

Al Jazeera’s Yousef Mawry, reporting from the Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, said the Iran-backed group was retaliating by attacking what it called Saudi Arabia’s “most precious assets”, which are Aramco oil facilities and the airport in Riyadh.

“Although Saudi Arabia has said it will retaliate, let’s not forget that it’s carried out many air strikes across Yemen, and the Yemeni group is still able to launch ballistic missiles and drones towards Saudi Arabia,” he added.

What other areas have the Houthis targeted?

The Iran-aligned Houthis have launched a series of missile and drone attacks targeting airports, military installations and oil facilities across Saudi Arabia, including areas near the border with Yemen.

On Monday, attacks on King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Airport in the southwestern city of Jazan and Najran international airport wounded three people and caused material damage, according to Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority.

On Tuesday, attacks on Abha airport and Riyadh’s King Khalid international airport killed three people and wounded 36 others, according to Saudi authorities.

The Houthis also claimed to have targeted an Aramco oil refinery in Rabigh, on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, with missiles and drones, saying the attack caused a fire. Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm the claim.

The Houthis imposed a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia in July following the outbreak of the latest round of fighting.

Yasmeen Al Eryani, the executive director for knowledge production at Sanaa Center, said that the Houthis are trying to put “maximum pressure” on Saudi Arabia.

“But they’re also mobilising the internal front lines in a really major way, moving even away from the west coast battle into Taiz and more densely populated areas,” Eryani, from the think tank based in government-controlled Aden, told Al Jazeera.

“We could see further mobilisation, they have very high momentum. They will probably continue to capitalise on that momentum, internally,” she said, adding that “the [Houthi] cross-border attacks” will put pressure across the region.

Eryani added that the Houthis were “provoking” Saudi Arabia, the US and regional states, which could potentially join in the conflict.

What is the latest in the fighting?

Houthi-affiliated media on Sunday reported an air strike targeting Naqil al-Zarbi in the Hayfan district of Yemen’s Taiz governorate in southwestern Yemen, as well as a missile attack on the Sahar district in the northern province of Saada.

Forces belonging to Yemen’s internationally-recognised government also released footage purportedly showing the downing of a Houthi drone over Mount Sabr in Taiz.

Meanwhile, Saudi-led coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki said early on Sunday that forces intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis towards al-Kharj province, as well as a drone in the kingdom’s Eastern Province.

On Saturday, Colonel Majed Abdullah al-Nazili, the spokesman for Yemeni government forces, said at least 1,150 Houthis were killed in almost 2,000 targeted operations across the country since the internationally-recognised government’s counteroffensive began.

He said the army had destroyed Houthi ammunition dumps and at least 180 combat, transport and supply vehicles operated by the Houthis, adding that ground forces “continued to advance their assault”.

Al Jazeera was not able to independently verify the competing claims.

Fighting has intensified across several fronts in Yemen, with Saudi-backed government forces launching the Dawn of Yemen offensive on October 4 to recapture Houthi-held territory, including the port city of Mocha and the island of Mayun.

While the internationally-recognised government’s forces said they had retaken Mocha and the Dhubab district near the strait, the Houthis have disputed the claims.

The Houthis have also tightened their siege of Taiz after capturing territory south of the city earlier this month, including al-Turbah. Taiz has been one of the most heavily contested cities in the war.

Fighting has also spread to Marib and al-Jawf, two governorates east of Sanaa, where government forces have reported advances against Houthi positions.

What has been the international response to the Houthi attack on the airport?

The attack has drawn condemnation from the US and the United Nations, while several foreign governments have warned their citizens to avoid the airport.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that an American was among those killed and condemned the attacks.

“These reprehensible attacks demonstrate a blatant disregard for innocent civilian life. They must stop now,” Rubio said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned Saturday’s strike, stressing that attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure violate international law.

The US, Canada, Germany and several other countries issued travel warnings, while some diplomatic missions restricted staff movements through the airport.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif described the attack as “heinous” and reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to Saudi security.

On October 5, Turkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia agreed to activate “deterrence measures” under a mutual defence pact and rapidly deploy forces to the Gulf kingdom to counter attacks by Yemen’s Houthis. This came weeks after the three countries signed the Mecca Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement.

Will the US join Saudi strikes against Yemen’s Houthis?

Trump has left open the possibility of US military involvement but has not announced a decision.

“We may. We’re going to look at it,” Trump told reporters on Saturday.

The US President also said he planned to speak with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, describing the attack as “not acceptable”.

According to US media reports, Washington has already provided intelligence sharing, target identification and planning assistance for the latest Saudi-backed offensive.

When the Saudi-led coalition intervened in the civil war in March 2015, Washington provided intelligence, logistical assistance and weapons to support its campaign against the Houthis, but did not directly participate in the coalition’s air strikes.

But in 2021, the Biden administration ended support for the Saudi-led offensive in Yemen, citing the humanitarian crisis. More than 100,000 Yemenis were killed and millions were displaced at the time.