Flames, smoke seen near Riyadh airport after Saudi warning of aerial attack threat

Near Riyadh's main airport, a significant column of smoke was observed on Saturday following loud booms and Saudi Arabia issuing warnings of potential danger overnight, amid an increase in attacks by Yemen’s Houthi group. Visuals from Reuters depicted a thick column of black smoke rising in the vicinity, with the airport highway, main terminal structure, and other facilities at the forefront.

In one segment of the footage, flames were seen emanating from what seemed to be fuel tanks. At the time of the incident, Saudi civil defense had dispatched alerts via phone for a possible aerial attack threat in Riyadh and Al-Kharj, located east of the capital. However, an all-clear was declared by Saudi civil defense officials on Saturday morning.

A Reuters correspondent in Riyadh's Olaya region heard the explosions prior to the all-clear being issued. While several alerts had been issued in Riyadh this year since the beginning of the US-Iran war, these were the first since the surge in attacks by the Houthis began in July.