Riyadh Airport Shutdown Extended; Houthis Claim Responsibility for Attacks; Gulf Shipping Hit by Another Drone Strike

Saudi civil aviation authorities extended the shutdown measures at Riyadh International Airport on Monday, giving no timeline for resuming operations. According to AFP and Reuters reports, Yemen's Houthi forces claimed responsibility for a series of attacks on Saudi Arabia's King Khalid International Airport.

The attacks that took place in Riyadh over the weekend have killed at least 12 people and injured hundreds more, representing the latest major civilian casualty event targeting sites inside Saudi Arabia in this years-long conflict. Riyadh airport is one of the busiest aviation hubs in the Middle East, and the shutdown will affect passenger transport, multinational business, and the regional aviation network, with no timeline currently set for resumption.

On the shipping front, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) formally classified a drone strike on an oil tanker near the Sohar anchorage in the Gulf of Oman as an attack on Monday. The Houthis have frequently used drones and missiles in recent months to target shipping lanes in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, keeping international shipping and global energy transportation under sustained pressure.

On the diplomatic front, according to the Saudi Press Agency, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister spoke by phone with his Iranian counterpart on Monday to exchange views on regional conflict escalation and de-escalation efforts. The Houthis have long been alleged to receive political and military support from Iran, and this call between Saudi Arabia and Iran continues the communication channels maintained since the two countries restored diplomatic relations in 2023.

Viewed together — the attack on Riyadh airport, the oil tanker strike at the Sohar anchorage, and the emergency call between Saudi and Iranian foreign ministers — the escalating cycle of regional conflict is dragging Saudi Arabia's heartland, key maritime chokepoints, and the diplomatic negotiating table into a new round of disorder simultaneously. The Saudi-led multinational coalition has been intervening in the Yemeni civil war since 2015, but years of military operations have not ended the fighting. By expanding the scope of strikes to targets inside Saudi Arabia and international shipping lanes, the Houthis have caused this protracted conflict to spill over into a wider region through a cycle of attacks and counterattacks.