Saudi Arabia reported a second attack on Riyadh’s international airport Sunday, materially escalating the security crisis less than a day after a deadly strike shut the facility and rattled Gulf markets.
The Saudi-led coalition said an unidentified projectile struck Terminal 4 at King Khalid International Airport, causing a fire.
Saudi civil aviation authorities reported injuries and said damage was still being assessed.
Saudi air defenses separately intercepted a cruise missile near the airport.
The new attack follows Saturday’s strike, which killed 13 people and wounded more than 300.
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility Sunday for Saturday’s attack and renewed warnings to airlines, airport workers and travelers to stay away from Saudi airports.
Riyadh airport remained closed Sunday.
The Houthis also claimed attacks against an airport in Dammam and two Saudi Aramco facilities. Saudi authorities had not confirmed those additional claims at the time of Reuters’ report, and they therefore remain unverified.
The repeated strikes increase the economic significance of the confrontation.
Saudi Arabia is simultaneously fighting an intensified campaign in Yemen while serving as one of the world’s most important oil exporters and an increasingly significant international investment and aviation hub.
Gulf financial markets were already under pressure following Saturday’s attack.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark equity index finished Sunday down 0.2%, while Qatar fell 1.5% to its lowest closing level since May 2020. Egypt’s blue-chip index dropped 2%.
President Donald Trump has also said Washington is considering participating in Saudi strikes against the Houthis, creating an additional escalation risk.
The immediate questions are whether Riyadh airport can reopen safely, whether attacks spread to Saudi energy infrastructure and whether Washington becomes more directly involved in the conflict.
