Riyadh Airport Struck Again as Trump Weighs Yemen Move — SkimNews
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- Houthis struck Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport on Sunday, a day after their Saturday missile attack on the same passenger terminal killed 12 people and wounded 300 — the deadliest attack in a Gulf Arab nation since the Iran war began.
- President Trump is weighing deeper U.S. military involvement against the Houthis, a move the article says could further threaten his Republican party in upcoming midterm elections.
- Saudi Arabia is running low on missile interceptors and has asked France, Britain, Pakistan, and Egypt to deploy air defense support; one regional official told AP that U.S. interceptor stocks have also dwindled during the war with Iran.
- Houthi seizures of key areas along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait last month, combined with the airport strikes, threaten global oil supplies and commercial shipping through the route — an alternative to the Iran-threatened Strait of Hormuz.
- Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree warned airlines, travelers, and airport workers to stay away from Saudi airports and airspace, exempting only the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
- Saturday's victims included a U.S. citizen, Egyptian Flynas flight attendant Azza Ramzy, and Syrian widowed mother of four Buthaina Ahmad Oweida, according to a Saudi statement and relatives.
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was hosting a major international energy conference in Riyadh when the strikes hit, threatening his push to open Saudi Arabia as a global business and tourism destination.
Why it matters: A second Riyadh airport strike in 24 hours intensifies pressure on Trump to commit the U.S. to a war he is already weighing joining before the midterms, while Saudi Arabia's dwindling missile interceptors have forced the kingdom to seek air defense help from France, Britain, Pakistan, and Egypt.
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