Houthi Airport Attacks Hit Two Saudi Airports as Yemen War Escalates

Houthi airport attacks reached inside Saudi Arabia on Monday evening, when strikes hit two airports in the kingdom's south: King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Jazan and Najran International Airport, both close to the Yemeni border. Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation said three people were wounded and that the attacks caused material damage, according to Reuters. The authority said it was assessing the damage and taking measures to keep passengers and staff safe and to protect civil aviation.

The latest Houthi airport attacks came as fighting across Yemen sharply intensified. Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces are pressing a major offensive to retake ground the Houthis seized in recent weeks, and Riyadh has stepped up airstrikes in support of the campaign. The Houthis have responded with their own missile and drone attacks on targets inside Saudi Arabia, a pattern that has now brought the fighting directly to civilian airports.

Houthi airport attacks: claims run ahead of confirmed damage

The group's military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said on X that the Houthis carried out three operations involving ballistic and cruise missiles and drones. He named King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and an Aramco refinery at Rabigh on the Red Sea coast, where he claimed a fire broke out, along with Abha airport, the Khamis Mushait military base, and what he called sensitive sites in Najran and Jazan. Those claims could not be independently verified, and Saudi authorities have not commented on them beyond the confirmed strikes on the Jazan and Najran airports.

Saree said the strikes answered sixty Saudi airstrikes and missile strikes in the preceding day on Sanaa and the provinces of Al-Jawf, Taiz, Hajjah, Saada, and Marib. He put the total since the current escalation began at more than fifteen hundred strikes. In the same statement he warned international airlines against continuing flights in Saudi airspace, saying it now falls inside the group's area of operations, while carving out an exception for the airspace over the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The widening Houthi airport attacks show how the conflict is migrating from front lines to civilian infrastructure.

The ground offensive driving the escalation

The latest Houthi airport attacks arrived in the middle of a Saudi-backed push on Yemen's west coast. Yemeni officials told the Associated Press that coalition forces recaptured Dhubab, a coastal town just north of the Bab el-Mandeb strait, along with the towns of Bab and Hadeid. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said the government push was part of a major offensive launched early Monday under air cover from a Saudi-led coalition. Witnesses described government tanks and troops entering the towns. The Bab el-Mandeb connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, making it one of the most important shipping routes in the world.

The Institute for the Study of War assessed that the Yemeni government, backed by Saudi air power, launched the offensive on October fourth with the aim of capturing the port city of Mokha and securing the coastline along the strait. Analysts say the government's advance is the sharpest reversal of Houthi fortunes in weeks, after the rebels made gains near the strait that rattled energy markets.

Riyadh finds new allies as the pressure grows

On Monday, Turkey and Pakistan agreed to provide military forces and capabilities to Saudi Arabia, reported by The National. Ministers and military commanders from the three countries gathered in Riyadh for talks on the Makkah defence pact, a signal that Riyadh is widening its coalition as the Houthi airport attacks reach deeper into the kingdom.

Washington is watching closely. United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that he expected the Saudi-backed government to hit back at the rebels to reclaim territory, and noted that Saudi Arabia and the United States have a defense agreement. Asked about the coalition's coordination with Washington, Rubio offered no details beyond saying the Saudis and their allies have a right to defend themselves.

The disruption is already visible in the skies. Aviation tracking platform FlightsRadar24 said flights to and from Riyadh's main airport were on hold on Tuesday, and two Saudis in Riyadh told The National they heard explosions on Monday evening. The United States mission in Saudi Arabia encouraged American citizens to remain vigilant, citing the ongoing security situation and the potential for aerial drone or missile attacks. For travelers and airlines, these Houthi airport attacks signal a shift: a war that began on Yemen's front lines is now reaching the region's departure boards.