HOUTHIS CLAIM NEW MISSILE STRIKE ON RIYADH AIRPORT

Yemen's Houthi rebels said they launched a ballistic missile attack on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said on X that the missile 'accurately struck its target and disrupted airport operations'. Flights to the Saudi capital were suspended after explosions were heard in Riyadh, including a large blast at the airport. The claim followed earlier Houthi strikes this week on Riyadh and Abha international airports.

Casualty figures for those earlier strikes differ between accounts: one report said three people were killed and 36 wounded across the two airports, while another said a Saudi announcement attributed one death to an attack on the Riyadh airport. The Saudi-led coalition said it had destroyed 82 Houthi military targets in retaliation. Saree's statement describing the new strike came hours after the Saudi announcement of the casualty figure for the Riyadh attack. The exchange of strikes forms part of continuing fighting between Houthi forces and the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

No ceasefire or halt to the exchanges was announced following the strikes. The suspension of flights at Riyadh's airport illustrates the disruption the conflict has caused to civil aviation in Saudi Arabia. The Houthi movement, which controls large areas of Yemen, has carried out repeated missile and drone strikes on Saudi territory during the conflict. Neither the Houthis nor the Saudi-led coalition set out a timetable for ending the hostilities.