RIYADH, October 11, 2026 — Saudi Arabia extended the closure of King Khalid International Airport on Sunday after Yemen’s Houthi rebels warned airlines and passengers against using Saudi airports, declaring the kingdom’s airspace a “theatre of operations” for their forces, a day after a deadly missile strike killed 12 people and wounded 309.
Houthis renew airport warning
“The Yemeni armed forces renew their warning to all aviation and navigation companies, experts, staff, workers, and travellers against using Saudi airports and airspace,” Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said on X, as reported by international media. “The airports and airspace are exposed to targeting and constitute a theatre of operations for our forces,” he added, exempting only the airports of Mecca and Medina, Islam’s two holiest cities.
Saree urged airlines and travellers to take the warning “seriously” and said Saudi Arabia “bore responsibility” for failing to intercept the missiles that struck the airport on Saturday.
Airport closure extended, flights in chaos
Operations at Riyadh’s main airport remain suspended. Air traffic monitor Flightradar24 reported on Sunday that the closure had been extended another 24 hours, until 21:00 UTC (midnight local time), after authorities suspended operations Saturday to assess damage and check facility safety.
Two aviation sources told AFP on Sunday that operations were halted “until further notice”, with radar and communications equipment damaged and runways still needing assessment. Nearly three quarters of scheduled departures had been cancelled by Sunday morning, Flightradar24 data showed, with Saudi authorities urging passengers to check with airlines before travelling.
Schools across Riyadh were ordered to switch to remote learning for a week, the second such instruction in less than a month, state media reported.
Trump: ‘We’ll find out’
US President Donald Trump said Saturday that Washington was evaluating whether to join Saudi strikes against the Houthis. “We may. We’re going to look at it,” he told reporters, according to The Associated Press. “We just found out about the recent attack. So we’ll make a decision. We move very quickly.”
Trump later said he planned to speak with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, calling the attack “horrendous” and “not acceptable”. Asked directly whether the United States might become involved in military operations against the Houthis, he replied: “Well, you’ll find out.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on social media that an American citizen was among the dead, writing that the attacks demonstrated “a blatant disregard for innocent civilian life” and “must stop now”.
Condemnation pours in
The UAE condemned the attack “in the strongest terms”, with its foreign ministry calling it a “flagrant violation” of Saudi sovereignty and reaffirming full solidarity with the kingdom, state news agency WAM reported.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also condemned the strike. “Attacks by Iran’s proxies are pushing the region into a spiral of violence,” von der Leyen wrote on X. “They are destabilising crucial global transport and energy nodes.”
The Arab League said the repeated targeting of civil aviation facilities “represents a dangerous escalation and a flagrant violation of international law”, reaffirming solidarity with Saudi Arabia’s right to take protective measures.
Saturday’s strike was the deadliest in any Gulf Arab country since the Iran war began. The Saudi-led coalition blamed the Houthis and called the attack a “full-fledged war crime”, vowing a formal response.
