17 killed, more than 330 injured in attacks on Riyadh airport
Attacks on King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh have killed 17 people and injured more than 330 others since Oct. 1, with the airport coming under 20 attacks during the two-week period, the Saudi-led coalition said Thursday, amid continued threats posed by Yemen's Houthi group against Saudi Arabia, Xinhua reports.
Speaking at a press conference in Riyadh, coalition spokesperson Turki Al-Maliki presented statistics on Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia from March 26, 2016, to Oct. 15, 2026, saying the group had launched 1,104 ballistic missiles and 1,135 drones, and used 118 explosive-laden boats and 278 naval mines during the period.
Al-Maliki said the Houthis had acquired military technologies with the assistance of what he described as "regional parties," adding that the group had established weapons storage facilities in mountainous areas of Yemen's Sanaa, Saada and Amran provinces as launching points for attacks.
He said the coalition had destroyed 127 Houthi storage facilities in recent days, while insisting that Saudi air defense systems were effective in intercepting missiles and drones.
The coalition will continue its operations to counter Houthi military capabilities and threats to Saudi Arabia's security and maritime navigation in the southern Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, he added.
Al-Maliki also accused the Houthis of attempting to target Islam's two holiest mosques in Mecca and Medina.
Earlier on Thursday, the coalition said it had intercepted and destroyed a cruise missile in the Medina region. The Houthis soon rejected the allegation, saying the group had not carried out any attack toward Saudi territory during the day.
Previously, Qazinform News Agency reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had urged Kazakh nationals in Saudi Arabia to take precautions amid attacks on civilian infrastructure, warning them to avoid airports unless strictly necessary and to postpone non-urgent travel.