EU reaffirms support for Saudi Arabia after Houthi attacks on King Khalid Airport

RIYADH — The Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen announced on Friday that it had destroyed three missile launchers utilized by the Houthis, a group threatening regional security. In a warning to such attacks, Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki stated that any assault on civilians or civilian facilities would be met with a firm response. The spokesman detailed that the three launchers were destroyed through strikes conducted at various locations on Thursday, October 8.

Al-Maliki conveyed this information through a statement posted on X, a social media platform. The statement emphasized that Houthi attacks directed at civilians and civilian infrastructure would be countered with decisive action. Accompanying the statement was video footage displayed by the coalition, which illustrated the strikes on three truck-mounted missile launchers in different locations. The footage also captured a strike aimed at a member of a missile launch crew at one of the sites.

This announcement followed a report from Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) confirming the deaths of three Saudi citizens and several injuries among citizens and residents from two attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. The first attack targeted airport facilities, while the second strike struck a Saudia aircraft. According to GACA, the attacks resulted in material damage, but airport operations resumed shortly after the incidents.