Attack on Riyadh Airport in Saudi Arabia Kills 12 and Wounds 309
An attack on the airport of Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, on Saturday killed 12 people and wounded 309. The Saudi-led coalition blames Yemen's Houthi movement and has vowed to respond.
An attack on the airport in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, killed 12 people and wounded 309 on Saturday, the country's civil aviation authority said. The Saudi-led military coalition blamed the Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel movement in Yemen, and promised to respond. It is the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia since May 2015.
Victims and aftermath
Authorities said the dead include four Saudi nationals, two Bangladeshis, one American, one Palestinian, and an Egyptian, a Jordanian, a Syrian and a Sudanese national. Of the 309 people wounded, several are seriously hurt. Airport operations have been suspended while officials assess the damage and carry out security checks.
Background
The airport has been attacked several times in the week since the Saudi-led coalition launched a broad military offensive against the Houthis in Yemen. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the earlier attacks, including one on Wednesday that killed a Sudanese citizen. Fighting has intensified in Yemen between the Houthis and Yemeni government forces backed by Saudi Arabia. The coalition is providing air support to government forces as they try to reverse recent Houthi gains along the Red Sea.
Shortly after Saturday's attack, US President Donald Trump said he was considering whether the United States should join Saudi air strikes on the Houthis. That could widen the conflict, but no decision has been announced.
