Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia escalate as Trump pledges no Iran strikes before midterms

Three people lay dead at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport after missiles struck the facility Thursday afternoon and evening. Among them was Capt. Hamoud Ali Alkalthami, a pilot for Saudia Airlines, the Saudi national carrier. The other two victims were Saudi civilians. Several more people of various nationalities sustained injuries ranging from minor to serious. The attacks came in two waves—one targeting airport infrastructure, the second striking a Saudia aircraft that happened to be empty at the time. No official statement named the attackers, but the Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed responsibility, as they have for multiple strikes on the airport throughout the week.

This was the deadliest assault on Saudi territory since the kingdom and its allies launched a major military offensive into Yemen the previous weekend, aimed at reclaiming ground seized by the Houthis. The escalation marks a turning point in what has become the new center of gravity in the wider Middle East conflict that ignited after the joint U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran in late February. The Houthis, who have controlled Yemen's capital Sanaa and vast portions of the country for over a decade, have spent recent weeks launching barrages of missiles and drones across the border into Saudi Arabia, targeting not just military installations but transport hubs, oil facilities, and civilian infrastructure.

The human toll and security threat prompted swift diplomatic responses. The United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia, and Canada all issued travel warnings for their citizens, with the U.K. advising against all but essential travel to Riyadh, several southern provinces, and the city of Taif. Germany, Australia, and Canada went further, recommending against all travel to Saudi Arabia. The U.S. tightened restrictions on its own government employees, requiring special authorization to use Riyadh airport and barring travel within twenty miles of the Yemeni border. The U.S. Embassy urged all Americans in the region to exercise heightened vigilance given the potential for further escalation.

Airlines responded by suspending service. Lufthansa, Air India, Pakistan International Airlines, FlyDubai, Etihad Airways, Emirates, and Air Arabia all halted flights to Riyadh. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency issued an advisory warning that recent attacks had demonstrated the Houthis' ability and intent to strike targets deep inside Saudi territory. The Houthis themselves issued a provocative statement through their spokesman, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, declaring that humanitarian flights to and from Riyadh would be permitted only with authorization from their Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center in Sanaa—a direct challenge to Saudi sovereignty over its own airspace. The group had warned international airlines on Monday that operating in Saudi skies would be unsafe as long as the Saudi campaign against Yemen continued, and that they would accept no responsibility for what happened to aircraft after that announcement.

On the military front, the Saudi-led coalition claimed significant gains. The coalition's spokesperson, Turki al-Maliki, announced Saturday that forces had destroyed 136 military targets in a large-scale operation against Houthi positions. A Saudi diplomat said Yemeni government forces, backed by coalition air support, had retaken control of the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait and Mayyun Island from the rebels. The Houthis disputed these claims, insisting Tuesday that their fighters maintained full control over all their territorial gains.

Meanwhile, diplomatic and economic maneuvering continued at the highest levels. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Thursday that Tehran had revised its peace proposals and stood ready to finalize them through intermediaries, though he accused Washington of repeatedly sabotaging talks. President Trump responded by pledging that the U.S. would not attack Iran before the November midterm elections, a statement that moved Brent crude oil prices down from $105 to $103 a barrel. Trump also announced that Russia had agreed to release diesel fuel to global markets—300,000 tons immediately, 500,000 tons in November, and 1 million tons in December, with an additional 3 million tons to follow. The Treasury Department temporarily waived sanctions on Russia's energy sector to facilitate these shipments. Diesel prices had climbed to $6.28 per gallon, up from $5.94 a month earlier and $3.68 a year ago, driven by the ongoing conflict. Germany announced it would release up to 15 million barrels of diesel, crude, and heating oil from its emergency reserves.

The conflict had also created a humanitarian crisis at sea. Nineteen Iranian oil tankers sat anchored in international waters near Sri Lanka, having been stranded for months after the U.S. resumed its naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The ships reported shortages of food, water, and fuel. Sri Lanka's foreign ministry said it had no immediate plans to assist them, citing concerns about potential secondary sanctions from the United States. Iran's ambassador to the Vatican, Mohammad Hossein Mokhtari, wrote to Pope Leo XIV urging him to use his moral authority to oppose U.S. sanctions and air restrictions, calling them a threat to ordinary Iranians' access to medical treatment, education, and religious pilgrimage.

Pakistan, meanwhile, confirmed it had a substantial number of military forces deployed in Saudi Arabia in a defensive capacity, though a foreign ministry spokesman declined to specify whether the deployment had grown since Pakistan signed a trilateral defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and Turkey in August. The USS Lincoln, an aircraft carrier that had spent more than 250 uninterrupted days at sea this year supporting the U.S. war effort in the region, returned to San Diego Thursday after 321 days away, reuniting thousands of sailors with their families.