Preventive measures show Saudi Arabia’s ability to secure its airspace, analyst says

Saudi Arabia's airspace has come under attack, with the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh being targeted on Saturday. According to the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation, 12 people were killed and 309 injured in the attack, with the victims including four Saudi citizens and eight expatriates of various nationalities, specifically two Bangladeshi residents, one American national, one Egyptian national, one Jordanian national, one Syrian national, one Palestinian national, and one Sudanese national.

The attack has been condemned by several countries, including Malaysia and Pakistan. Malaysia's Foreign Ministry expressed solidarity with Saudi Arabia and urged all parties to respect international law and pursue a peaceful resolution through dialogue and diplomacy. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the attack as "heinous" and reaffirmed Pakistan's commitment to Saudi Arabia's sovereignty and security.

The Houthi group in Yemen has issued a new threat to Saudi Arabia's airspace, warning passengers not to travel to certain airports. A spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis attributed the strike to the Iran-backed group, calling it a "full-fledged war crime". The coalition vowed to respond to the attack. Analyst Mohammed Al-Harbi said Saudi Arabia's preventive steps to resume air operations demonstrate its capacity to safeguard its airspace.

Brief written by urgent.news from Ajel English, Egypt Independent, New Straits Times, Saudi Gazette, Malay Mail — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.