Saudi coalition reports missile interceptions as Houthis renew threat to Riyadh airport

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Saudi-led coalition operating in Yemen said it intercepted missiles and drones over Riyadh and southern Saudi Arabia on Sunday amid continued fighting with the Iran-aligned Houthis. The group also threatened further attacks on the capital’s King Khalid International Airport, where two terminals resumed operations that day.

Alerts issued in three cities

Saudi civil defence authorities sent emergency warnings to Riyadh, Abha and Khamis Mushait on Sunday, then declared the threat over minutes afterwards.

According to the coalition, Riyadh was targeted with a ballistic missile and two drones, while a cruise missile was directed at Khamis Mushait in the south. A subsequent coalition statement reported the interception of ten ballistic missiles heading towards the kingdom’s southern regions.

Airport reopens amid renewed threats

The Houthis claimed attacks on Saudi oil facilities and the airport on Saturday. Saudi authorities offered no direct response to those claims.

Yahya Saree, the Houthis’ military spokesperson, described the airport as a “military target” and urged airlines, airport employees and passengers not to use it.

In an announcement late Saturday, the airport said domestic services would use Terminal 1 from Sunday, while national carriers’ international services would operate through Terminal 2.

The reopening followed a shutdown on October 10 after an attack claimed by the Houthis left 13 people dead and injured more than 300. It was the kingdom’s deadliest attack in over a decade.

Conflict widens regional pressure

The fighting has emerged as an increasingly destabilising theatre within the US-Israeli offensive against Iran, placing Saudi Arabia, a US ally, under pressure in the broader war.

Saudi Arabia has intensified attacks on the Houthis since the group captured strategically important territory on the Red Sea coastline last month, advancing closer to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The strait is a global maritime bottleneck and a shipping passage used by Gulf oil producers. It lies across the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz.