Two Bangladeshis among 12 killed in Riyadh airport attack, 309 injured
The dead include four Saudi nationals, two citizens of Bangladesh, and one person each from the US, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt
An attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh has killed at least 12 people and injured 309, prompting a complete suspension of operations at Saudi Arabia's main aviation hub.
The dead include four Saudi nationals, two citizens of Bangladesh, and one person each from the US, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt. Local civil aviation authorities said several of the injured remained in critical conditio, says the BBC.
Eyewitnesses reported that gate 401 in one of the passenger terminals was struck directly, triggering panic as passengers fled. More than a dozen ambulances rushed to the scene as authorities assessed structural damage.
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Flight-tracking data showed that all incoming and outgoing flights had been diverted or cancelled following the attack.
Saudi-led military coalition spokesman Maj Gen Turki al-Maliki condemned the strike on the civilian passenger terminal as a "full-fledged war crime" and said the coalition would respond.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the attack and confirmed the death of an American national. Western embassies, including the UK Foreign Office, urged their citizens to stay away from the airport until security was restored. Several regional airlines, including Kuwait Airways, cancelled flights, citing the security situation.
The attack follows a series of strikes targeting Saudi infrastructure. Two airport attacks shortly before the Riyadh incident killed three Saudi nationals, including a pilot. Three people were also killed in Houthi strikes on two Saudi airports on 6 and 7 October.
In a separate incident, a projectile fell near King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, in eastern Saudi Arabia.
The Iran-backed Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the broader pattern of strikes, saying they were retaliation for Saudi Arabia's military support for Yemeni government forces, a years-long blockade and an earlier air strike on the Houthi-controlled airport in Sanaa.
A temporary ceasefire established in 2022 began to unravel in July after the Houthis declared a "maritime embargo" against Saudi Arabia. The movement subsequently launched drone and missile strikes targeting airports, oil installations and oil tankers in the Red Sea.
The escalation has coincided with intensified ground and maritime fighting, including military manoeuvres around the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait. Yemen's government has also declared all-out war to reclaim territory held by Houthi forces.
