“Fire and smoke” near Riyadh airport following intensification of clashes between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis

🔸Media report that on Saturday, 28 Shahrivar, following reports of explosions heard in Riyadh, a large plume of smoke was seen near the main airport of the Saudi capital. The incident comes as clashes between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi group have intensified.

🔸Reuters video footage and images showed a massive column of black smoke in the area, with the airport highway, the main terminal building, and other facilities visible in the foreground.

🔸Agence France-Presse also, citing residents of Riyadh, reported seeing fire and smoke heading toward the city’s airport and said firefighters were trying to extinguish a fire at a fuel tank, on which the Saudi Aramco oil company’s logo was visible, near the airport.

🔸Saudi Civil Defense sent warnings overnight via telephone SMS messages about a possible threat in Riyadh and the city of Al-Kharj, east of the capital, and early Saturday afterward announced that the situation had returned to normal.

🔸Reuters and Agence France-Presse reporters said they had heard the sounds of explosions in Riyadh before the warning-message was issued.

🔸The “Flightradar24” flight-tracking website further reported “widespread disruptions” at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and placed the airport at the highest level of its disruption index.

🔸After the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran began in March 2024, several alerts had been issued in Riyadh, but these were the first such warnings since the intensification of clashes with the Houthis in July.

🔸Read the full report on the Radio Farda website.