Twelve killed and over 300 injured in airport attack in Saudi capital Riyadh

A strike hit the airport in Saudi Arabia’s capital.

Those killed include four Saudi citizens, two people from Bangladesh and one person each from the US, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt.

Some of the injured were reported to be in serious condition.

A diplomatic source attributed the attack to a Houthi missile with the Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis blamed the Iran-backed group for the strike, describing it as a “war crime”.

The attack came amid an unprecedented wave of Houthi strikes against the kingdom since a truce in the group’s long-running war with Yemen’s Riyadh-backed government collapsed in July.

Saudi civil aviation authorities suspended operations at King Khalid International Airport following the attack, with damage still being assessed.

Hours after the strike, a spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition said on X that a projectile had landed near King Fahd International Airport in Dammam.

Early on Sunday, the coalition also reported intercepting a missile southeast of Riyadh, according to RTÉ.

The Houthis renewed their warning to airlines and passengers against using Saudi airports and airspace, saying the kingdom “bears responsibility” for failed interceptions.

The group had not claimed responsibility for Saturday’s deadly strike at the time of reporting, although they had claimed separate attacks on King Khalid International Airport earlier in the week.

The Irish Embassy in Riyadh advised Irish citizens to avoid the airport and follow official safety guidance. Further details of the advice should be checked against the embassy’s original notice.