An attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed 12 people and injured 309 others, Saudi civil aviation authorities said, in the deadliest strike reported in a Gulf Arab country since the latest escalation of the regional conflict.
The African Union Commission condemned the attack on Sunday and called for an immediate halt to attacks and urgent de-escalation.
The dead included four Saudi citizens, two Bangladeshi nationals and one person each from the United States, Palestine, Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Sudan, according to Saudi authorities’ account reported by the Associated Press and Reuters.
Some of the injured were in critical condition, and hospitals across Riyadh received casualties by ambulance and helicopter.
The AU said the attack was “attributed to the Houthis.” Reuters reported, however, that the Iran-backed Yemeni group had not claimed responsibility for the Saturday strike at the time of publication.
The Houthis had earlier warned airlines against using Saudi airspace and claimed attacks on the airport during the week.
A missile struck a complex containing Terminals 3 and 4, which serve domestic flights, according to a regional official cited by AP.
Video verified by Reuters showed ambulances at the airport, while an eyewitness described an explosion followed by injured people on the
ground.
Saudi authorities suspended airport operations and diverted flights. The disruption came after several airlines had already suspended or reduced services to Riyadh and other Saudi airports following earlier attacks, including strikes that killed four people and damaged a commercial aircraft on the ground.
The U.S. Mission in Saudi Arabia advised American citizens to avoid King Khalid International Airport and its surrounding areas.
It warned of possible flight cancellations, airspace closures and continuing travel disruption, and said U.S. government employees require special authorization to use the main airports in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam.
The attack drew condemnation beyond the AU. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio denounced the strikes as showing “a blatant disregard for innocent civilian life,” according to Reuters.
U N Secretary-General António Guterres also condemned the strike and said attacks on civilians and the civilian infrastructure violate international law and must stop.
A U.N. spokesperson separately called for maximum restraint and precautions to protect civilians.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington was considering whether to join Saudi strikes against the Houthis.
The possibility raises the risk that the conflict will widen beyond Yemen, where Saudi-backed government forces and the Houthis have resumed fighting after a 2022 ceasefire unraveled.
The latest violence follows a Saudi-led military offensive against the Houthis and a sharp deterioration along Yemen’s Red Sea coast.
The Houthis have said they are targeting Saudi shipping in response to a blockade, while Saudi Arabia and its allies have intensified air operations against Houthi-held territory.
Claims about civilian casualties from those operations could not be independently verified by Reuters.
The AU Commission expressed solidarity with Saudi Arabia, offered condolences to the victims’ families and wished the injured a speedy recovery.
It stressed that civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected under international law and “must never be
targeted.”
