Houthi Missile Strikes Kill 13 at Riyadh Airport as Trump Weighs US Role

A projectile struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Sunday, killing one Pakistani resident and wounding 11 others. The attack came one day after a larger strike killed 12 people and injured 309, the deadliest on Saudi territory in more than a decade.

Saudi civil aviation authorities confirmed both incidents. The Sunday strike hit the airport complex and sparked a fire. Air defenses intercepted a second missile nearby. The Saturday attack targeted a complex housing terminals 3 and 4 for domestic flights. No warning was issued by the kingdom's threat system before that strike.

The dead from the Saturday attack included four Saudi citizens, two Bangladeshis, and one person each from the United States, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed an American citizen was among those killed. Hospitals in Riyadh received casualties by ambulance and helicopter. Some of the wounded remained in critical condition.

This marked the third attack on the airport in a single week. Earlier strikes this week killed at least four people, including a pilot, and damaged a commercial aircraft on the tarmac. The Houthis, the Iran-backed group that controls much of Yemen, have escalated their campaign against Saudi targets this summer. The attacks form part of a broader spillover from the war involving Iran, the United States and Israel that began in February.

President Donald Trump said the United States may join Saudi strikes on the Houthis. "We may. We're going to look at it," he told reporters after learning of the recent attack. He described the incidents as not acceptable and said he would speak with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi-led coalition called the Saturday attack a full-fledged war crime and vowed a decisive response. Houthi media reported Saudi airstrikes in Sanaa governorate on Sunday.

Operations at the airport were suspended. Airlines cancelled flights. Foreign embassies, including those of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada, advised their citizens to avoid the airport and surrounding areas. The closure disrupts a key transit point for the Gulf. Passenger traffic and cargo movements through Riyadh face delays as authorities assess damage and security.

The Houthi-run Health Ministry in Yemen reported that Saudi-led coalition actions had killed 91 Yemenis and injured 168 over five weeks. It stated that 60 percent of those killed were women and children. Saudi officials have not confirmed those figures.

The timing adds pressure on energy markets already strained by the Iran conflict. Attacks on Saudi infrastructure raise questions about the security of Gulf oil and gas facilities. Traders watch for any further disruption to regional aviation and logistics that could affect fuel prices.

Trump's possible involvement would expand the US role beyond the existing Iran war. The Defense Department recently raised the number of US service members killed in related operations to 21, with 865 wounded. Any decision to strike the Houthis would draw on those resources and risk further escalation across the region.

Saudi authorities have not released a full damage assessment for the airport terminals. The complex handles both domestic and international traffic. Recovery of full operations will depend on repairs and the effectiveness of air defenses against further projectiles.

The sequence of attacks shows the Houthis can reach the Saudi capital repeatedly despite existing defenses. The absence of a public alert before the Saturday strike leaves open questions about detection and response times. Those details matter for the safety of the thousands of passengers and workers who use the airport daily.

As of Monday, the airport remained closed. Officials continued to treat the wounded. The coalition's promised response and Trump's pending decision will determine whether the strikes remain limited to the current cycle or widen the conflict further.