A Saudia pilot is dead after a second attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport in two days.
Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said on Friday that three Saudi citizens were killed in attacks on the airport and a Saudia aircraft. The airline named the pilot as Humoud Al-Kalthami and said the plane was on the ground with no passengers aboard. The first strike hit airport facilities. The second hit the aircraft.
Riyadh did not say who fired. The Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen claimed the attack, saying a ballistic missile did damage, but offered no evidence.
The Thursday strikes were not the opening blow. The day before, an attack on King Khalid killed a Sudanese national and wounded eight people. A separate strike on Abha airport killed Moroccan and Algerian residents and wounded 28. Three African nationals died in one day, far from home, at airports they were passing through or working in.
The Saudi-led coalition says its air defences caught some of the fire. Spokesman Turki al-Malki said two Houthi ballistic missiles aimed at Riyadh were intercepted, along with a third fired toward Khamis Mushait near the Yemen border.
The aviation industry did not wait for an official all-clear. Hundreds of Riyadh flights were cancelled, according to FlightAware, and crude oil prices jumped. Air India suspended operations through Saturday. Lufthansa Group and Pakistan International Airlines also pulled flights. Saudia says its own operations returned to normal by 6pm on Thursday.
Washington is watching. The US Embassy in Riyadh said the Houthis have attacked civilian airports and warned that the conflict could escalate. The United Nations said strikes on civilian airports violate international law.
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The pressure has been building for days. Saudi and allied Yemeni forces recently launched a major ground and air offensive against the rebels, and the Houthis have claimed repeated attacks on Saudi airports, military sites and oil facilities.
Early Thursday, the Houthis told global airlines “for the last time” that operating in Saudi airspace carried consequences. Hours later, a Saudia aircraft was hit.
