An advisory issued to pilots on Monday confirmed that King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, will remain closed until October 17. This decision follows an earlier announcement by the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) on the same day, which stated that operational suspensions at the airport would continue indefinitely pending further notice.
In a statement, GACA attributed the extension to the need to complete necessary procedures for verifying the safety of airport facilities and their operational readiness, in coordination with relevant authorities. The closure comes after a Houthi strike targeted the airport on Sunday, resulting in the death of one Pakistani resident and injuries to 11 other individuals.
Since October 5, five airports in Saudi Arabia have been subjected to ten attacks. According to Anadolu Agency statistics, these incidents have resulted in 19 deaths, hundreds of injuries, significant material damage, and disruptions to air traffic movements.
On Monday, the Houthi group announced via its affiliated Saba News Agency that the Saudi military air force had targeted sites in the Yemeni provinces of Sanaa, Saada, and Taiz in the southwest. These developments occur amid a continuous military escalation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi movement since July last year, which has included strikes on civilian aviation infrastructure and energy facilities within the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition since March 2015 to support the Yemeni government against the Houthi movement, which has controlled the capital Sanaa and several other provinces since September 2014.
