One hundred flights operating from Dhaka have been cancelled or suspended following attacks by Yemen’s Houthi group on Saudi airports, including those in Riyadh and Dammam, affecting 15,393 passengers.
According to Shahjalal International Airport authorities, 41 direct flights and 59 transit flights have so far been cancelled or suspended from Dhaka.
Among the direct flights affected, 17 are operated by Biman Bangladesh Airlines, 10 by US-Bangla Airlines, seven by Saudia Airlines and seven by Riyadh Airways.
Of these, US-Bangla Airlines has cancelled its flights to Riyadh until Oct 21. And Biman Bangladesh has suspended its flights to Dammam and Riyadh until Oct 17.
IndiGo Airlines saw the most transit flights cancelled with 22. In addition, 14 transit flights of Emirates Airlines, seven flights each from Salam Air and Qatar Airways, six flights of Fly Dubai, two flights of Air India and one flight of Egypt Air were also cancelled.
Since Saturday, the Houthis have launched a series of attacks on Riyadh and Dammam airports in Saudi Arabia.
The attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh at 3:15pm that day was the bloodiest attack on Saudi Arabia in recent history with 13 people from different countries being killed and 308 people being injured. Two of the dead and 27 of the injured are Bangladeshis.
Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Yemen group vowed to continue attacks on various airports and oil installations in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
The announcement came a day after the Houthis attacked the headquarters of Saudi Arabian oil giant Saudi Aramco. Several sources said the offices were heavily damaged in the attack.
The Houthis said the threatened sites were legitimate targets in retaliation for Saudi Arabia's attacks in Yemen.
The conflict has sparked concerns about an escalating war in the Persian Gulf that could draw the US and Iran into further confrontations.
The aviation sector is concerned that such a conflict could lead to widespread disruptions to air traffic.