Houthi Missiles and Drones Hit Saudi Targets as Riyadh Airport Remains Closed After Deadly Strikes

Yemen’s Houthi forces launched additional missiles and drones toward Saudi Arabia on Tuesday as the kingdom continued airstrikes on fuel infrastructure in Houthi-held territory. Saudi coalition spokesmen said they intercepted two ballistic missiles headed for Khamis Mushait and three drones north of Riyadh. An administrative building belonging to Saudi Aramco in Dhahran suffered partial fire damage after one missile was intercepted over the city.

The exchanges follow a weekend of strikes on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh that killed at least 13 people and injured more than 300. A further attack on Sunday killed one person and wounded 11. Saudi civil aviation authorities have extended the airport’s closure until 9 pm on 17 October. Airlines have cancelled flights to Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Madinah for the period.

On the Yemeni side, the Royal Saudi Air Force hit a fuel depot near Sanaa. The Houthis responded with the missile barrages that reached Saudi cities. Coalition officials warned residents near an oil site in Sanaa to leave the area. Houthi spokesmen have warned of a “painful” response if the United States joins the Saudi campaign and have renewed threats against Saudi airspace.

The fighting restarted in earnest last month after Houthi forces seized stretches of Yemen’s Red Sea coast, including territory near the Bab al-Mandab Strait. Saudi oil exports from Yanbu have already been rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope in some cases, adding roughly a month to voyages to East Asia. Brent crude has traded near $105–106 a barrel amid the latest incidents.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has sought to reassure markets that the kingdom’s energy supply remains intact. Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman described Riyadh as the “capital of energy security.” Still, the repeated airport closures and the risk of further strikes on oil facilities have complicated the kingdom’s diversification plans and raised insurance costs for tankers in the region.

The current round is the most intense since the broader Iran-related conflict that began earlier in the year. US officials have said they are considering support for Saudi efforts to retake Red Sea coastal areas but have not announced direct strikes. Houthi statements continue to frame the attacks as retaliation for Saudi operations inside Yemen.

Civilian casualties have concentrated at the Riyadh airport. Among those killed in the weekend strikes were an Egyptian flight attendant and a Jordanian coffee-shop worker. Hospitals in the capital treated hundreds of injured passengers and staff. Saudi authorities have not released a full breakdown of nationalities among the dead.

For residents of Riyadh the pattern is now familiar: text-message alerts, explosions from intercepts, and temporary restrictions on movement near military and energy sites. The extended airport shutdown has stranded travellers and forced airlines to reroute through Dammam or international hubs. Repair timelines for the terminal facilities have not been published.

The coalition has not indicated when the current offensive in Yemen will end. Houthi media continue to release footage of claimed strikes on Saudi-backed positions northeast of Sanaa. Both sides have issued statements promising further action if the other does not stop. The immediate effect is a sustained disruption to Saudi civilian aviation and a fresh layer of risk around the kingdom’s oil infrastructure.