Houthi attacks kill 3 at Saudi airports; coalition strikes 82 targets

Houthi attacks on Abha International Airport and King Khalid International Airport in Saudi Arabia on October 6 and 7, 2026, killed three foreign nationals and injured 36 others, according to the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation. The attack on Abha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia killed two women—one Moroccan and one Algerian—and wounded 28 people, including Saudi nationals and citizens of Bangladesh and the Philippines. The assault on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed one Sudanese national and injured eight residents, including five Saudi citizens, two Egyptians, and one Pakistani. Injuries ranged from minor to critical, and all casualties were transported to hospitals for medical care. Both airports sustained material damage during the attacks.

In response, a Saudi-led coalition launched a major military operation targeting 82 military positions linked to Houthi forces across four provinces in Yemen—Saada, Hodeidah, Jawf, and Marib. Coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki stated the strikes targeted ballistic missile sites, command and control centers, communications systems, and personnel assembly points, characterizing the action as retaliation for attacks on Saudi civilians and civilian infrastructure. Al-Maliki said the conduct "will necessarily be punished."

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree countered that Saudi forces had conducted 156 airstrikes and missile attacks in the preceding 24 hours across six Yemeni provinces, bringing the total number of Saudi strikes since the conflict began to 1,798. Houthi leader Hussein al-Houthi called on Turkey and Pakistan not to join Saudi operations in Yemen, stating that negotiations with the kingdom had stalled and that "neither negotiation nor other efforts have worked."

The escalation reflects intensifying tensions in the Yemen conflict, where Iran-aligned Houthi forces control significant territory near the strategically important Bab al-Mandeb strait connecting the Arabian and Red Seas. Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces remain locked in escalating combat with the Houthis. The U.S. embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert advising American citizens to exercise heightened vigilance amid the ongoing situation.