New Delhi: Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement on Thursday claimed it had targeted King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with a ballistic missile, as India condemned recent attacks on Saudi Arabia’s civilian infrastructure and expressed solidarity with the kingdom. Saudi authorities had not immediately confirmed the latest Houthi claim or reported fresh casualties or damage.
The claim came hours after Saudi authorities said earlier attacks on King Khalid International Airport and Abha International Airport had killed three people and wounded 36. A Sudanese national was killed and eight people wounded in Riyadh, while two women, from Morocco and Algeria, were killed and 28 people injured at Abha.
The Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said the group had targeted the Riyadh airport with a ballistic missile. The claim could not immediately be independently verified, while King Khalid International Airport is the principal civilian airport serving the Saudi capital.
The renewed attacks come amid escalating fighting in Yemen between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces. Saudi backed Yemeni government forces have been conducting operations against Houthi positions along the Red Sea coast, while the Saudi-led coalition said it had struck 82 Houthi military targets, according to Reuters.
Bab al-Mandab connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and is a critical route for international shipping and energy movement, giving the renewed hostilities wider implications for commercial navigation.
India condemns attacks on Saudi airports
Against this backdrop, the Ministry of External Affairs said India strongly condemned the attacks on Abha International Airport and King Khalid International Airport. “Targeting of civilian infrastructure is completely unacceptable,” the MEA said, while affirming India’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia.
India had already raised concerns over the widening violence in the region. The MEA said last month that attacks on Saudi sovereign territory, including civilian infrastructure and economic assets, undermined regional stability and threatened freedom of navigation through Bab al-Mandab, while calling for an early restoration of peace and stability.
The issue has also figured in India-Saudi diplomatic engagement. The MEA said the external affairs minister, S Jaishankar, discussed the Houthis and wider regional developments with the Saudi foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.
The latest Houthi claim comes as Saudi Arabia faces renewed attacks linked to the fighting in Yemen, while India has reiterated its opposition to strikes on civilian infrastructure and its support for regional stability and freedom of navigation.