Houthi Drone and Missile Attacks Test Saudi Arabia's Vulnerability

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement has escalated drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia. The situation was examined on 12 October by "The Debate", a discussion programme on the French international news channel France 24. It asks how exposed the kingdom is, as the region's richest nation, and what the attacks mean for Middle East security and energy supplies.

The attack on Riyadh's airport

The Houthis said they attacked King Khalid Airport in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on 8 October 2026. Social media footage distributed by Reuters shows smoke and flames rising from the airport. The programme also refers to strikes on oil facilities and sets out to assess the physical and material damage.

Riyadh's options

The programme asks how much pressure a battle-hardened militia can put on the richest country in the region by using cheap drone warfare. It also looks at how the attacks affect the kingdom's ability to project strength, and at the options open to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

According to the programme, the United States is low on ammunition and reluctant to open a new front so close to its midterm elections. It says voters are angry about long-running wars and high fuel prices.

Wider consequences

The programme says Iran's retaliation against Donald Trump's war had already exposed the vulnerability of neighbouring Gulf states. It adds that the whole world is paying for Trump's decision to attack Iran. It therefore asks whether global energy supply chains, and the Arabian Peninsula itself, can ever return to how they were.

This report is based on the programme's description, not on an official assessment of the attacks or the damage.