Smoke and flames reported near Riyadh airport as Pakistan presses Iran over energy supplies

Saudi Arabia issued civil-defense alerts early Saturday after Reuters reporters heard two booms in Riyadh; the agency later gave the all-clear before reporting a large plume of smoke and flames near King Khalid International Airport. The cause was unclear and Saudi authorities had not commented. Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis have recently stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia and launched a ground offensive around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, seizing Mokha and nearby islands. The incident comes as the Trump administration approved a potential $24.3 billion sale of 48 Lockheed Martin F-35 jets to the kingdom last week.