- Saudi authorities said three Saudi citizens were killed in Houthi-claimed attacks on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on October eighth, twenty twenty-six.
- The strikes damaged a Saudia Airlines aircraft and injured Saudi citizens and foreign residents, with injuries ranging from minor to serious.
- Saudi Arabia said air traffic returned to normal; it did not confirm Houthi claims of strikes on other sites.
Saudi authorities said Houthi-claimed attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed three Saudi citizens and damaged a Saudia Airlines aircraft on Thursday, October 8, 2026. One strike hit airport facilities, while another damaged the plane.
Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree said the group attacked Riyadh’s airport with two ballistic missiles. The Saudi death toll came as the Houthis claimed a widening campaign against aviation targets.
The General Authority of Civil Aviation said the dead were Saudi citizens. Saudia Group identified one as Capt. Hamoud Ali Alkalthami, an airline pilot and employee. Authorities did not publicly name the other two victims.
Several Saudi citizens and foreign residents were injured, with injuries ranging from minor to serious. Smoke rose over the airport, and widespread cancellations and delays followed.
Saudi authorities later said air traffic had returned to normal. The Houthis’ claims about other sites were not confirmed by Saudi Arabia.
Saree cited retaliation and made additional strike claims
Saree described the Riyadh attacks as a response to Saudi “aggression.” He alleged Saudi-based forces had carried out 60 airstrikes and missile attacks in the previous 24 hours.
The group also claimed strikes on Najran airport and King Khalid Air Base in Khamis Mushait. Those claims were separate from the attack in Riyadh, and Saudi Arabia did not confirm them.
The Houthis warned aircraft to avoid Saudi airspace. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency expanded its aviation-risk advisory area, citing the attacks and risks to civilian aircraft.
Earlier attacks had already killed three people
The Riyadh deaths followed attacks on October 6 and 7 at Abha International Airport, near the Yemen border, and at King Khalid Airport. Those strikes killed two women, one Moroccan and one Algerian, and a Sudanese man.
The attacks also wounded 36 people in total. The latest deaths added to a toll from strikes at two Saudi airports over several days.
The airport attacks came during renewed fighting between Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces and the Iran-aligned Houthis. The Houthis had captured strategically important areas along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, and Saudi-led forces later struck Houthi targets in Sanaa and other Yemeni provinces.
Guterres condemned the cross-border attacks
UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the “continued Houthi cross-border attacks” and said he was “deeply concerned by the sharp escalation in fighting.”
