Flames, smoke seen near Riyadh airport as Houthis claim attacks on Saudi capital
Saudi authorities confirmed the attack but reported no casualties or significant damage
Yemen-based Houthis have escalated their attacks on Saudi Arabia by launching ballistic missiles towards Riyadh, marking the first direct targeting of the Saudi capital since fighting intensified. Saudi authorities confirmed the attack but reported no casualties or significant damage, though visual evidence indicated a large smoke plume over the city. The Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the Riyadh strike and separately for an attack on an Aramco facility in Yanbu, a key oil export hub, stating these actions were in response to a Saudi strike on Yemen's capital, Sanaa. These attacks occur amidst heightened regional tensions linked to the conflict involving Iran, prompting the US to urge increased vigilance for its citizens in the region.
Yemen-based Houthis have escalated their attacks on Saudi Arabia by launching ballistic missiles towards Riyadh, marking the first direct targeting of the Saudi capital since fighting intensified. Saudi authorities confirmed the attack but reported no casualties or significant damage, though visual evidence indicated a large smoke plume over the city. The Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the Riyadh strike and separately for an attack on an Aramco facility in Yanbu, a key oil export hub, stating these actions were in response to a Saudi strike on Yemen's capital, Sanaa. These attacks occur amidst heightened regional tensions linked to the conflict involving Iran, prompting the US to urge increased vigilance for its citizens in the region.
Yemen-based Houthis have escalated their attacks on Saudi Arabia by launching ballistic missiles towards Riyadh, marking the first direct targeting of the Saudi capital since fighting intensified. Saudi authorities confirmed the attack but reported no casualties or significant damage, though visual evidence indicated a large smoke plume over the city. The Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the Riyadh strike and separately for an attack on an Aramco facility in Yanbu, a key oil export hub, stating these actions were in response to a Saudi strike on Yemen's capital, Sanaa. These attacks occur amidst heightened regional tensions linked to the conflict involving Iran, prompting the US to urge increased vigilance for its citizens in the region.
Yemen-based Houthis have escalated attacks on Saudi Arabia, launching ballistic missiles towards Riyadh early Sunday. It was the first reported direct targeting of the Saudi capital since fighting intensified between the Iran-backed group and its regional adversaries.
Saudi authorities confirmed the attack but reported no casualties or significant damage. Reuters footage and photographs showed a large column of black smoke rising over the Riyadh area, with the airport highway, main terminal and other facilities visible in the foreground.
The Houthis, who control much of northern Yemen, including the country's most populous areas, have stepped up attacks on Saudi territory in recent weeks after announcing a naval blockade against the kingdom in July. Several vessels in the Red Sea have subsequently come under attack.
The Houthi movement also claimed responsibility for the Riyadh strike, although it did not specify the target. It separately said it had attacked an Aramco facility in Yanbu, a key Saudi oil-export hub on the Red Sea coast.
The group said the attacks were carried out in response to what it described as a Saudi strike on Yemen's capital, Sanaa.
Earlier, the Saudi civil defence sent the alerts by phone overnight for potential danger of aerial attacks in Riyadh and the city of Al-Kharj east of the capital, before issuing an all-clear on Saturday morning.
The alerts were sent after explosions were reportedly heard in Riyadh.
The latest attacks come amid wider regional tensions linked to the conflict involving Iran. US President Donald Trump has rejected Saudi requests for direct US military intervention against the Houthis, while the US State Department has urged Americans in the region to exercise heightened vigilance. It has also advised US citizens outside the Middle East to seriously reconsider travel to and through the region.