Riyadh airport stays closed following deadly attack
King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh remained closed following an attack blamed on Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis that killed 12 people—four Saudis and eight foreign nationals, including an American—and injured 309 others. With radar and communications equipment damaged, flight trackers indicated the closure would extend into Monday, 12 October, while the Houthis renewed warnings for travellers to avoid Saudi aviation hubs. A separate projectile also fell near Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport.
The assault prompted sharp international condemnation. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned against a regional spiral of violence, and UN Secretary-General António Guterres stressed that striking civilian infrastructure violates international law. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump indicated that Washington was considering whether to join potential Saudi retaliatory strikes against the Houthis.
Aviation disruption widened as carriers including Emirates, Etihad, Lufthansa, and SriLankan Airlines cancelled or suspended Riyadh flights amid heightened European Union airspace warnings. Domestically, authorities ordered schools across the capital to switch to remote learning for the week.
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