Houthis Strike Aden Palace as Saudi Airport Suspensions Continue After Attacks

MIDDLE EAST — On October 15, Houthi forces fired missiles at the al-Maashiq presidential palace in Aden, Yemen, the seat of the internationally recognized government, killing two security personnel, Yemeni officials said.

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation has extended the suspension of operations at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh through October 17 following missile and unmanned aerial vehicle attacks earlier in the month that killed at least 17 people there, including one U.S. citizen, and injured hundreds, the Saudi-led coalition said.

The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert on October 15 stating that U.S. government employees require special authorization from the Chief of Mission to use any airport in Saudi Arabia.

King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam remain operational with delays and cancellations.

Locations Affected

• King Khalid International Airport, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at approximately 24.96, 46.70: operations suspended through October 17 after multiple strikes; distance about 6 miles (10 km) north of central Riyadh.

• Al-Maashiq presidential palace, Aden, Yemen, at approximately 12.79, 45.02: missiles struck the complex on October 15; seat of the internationally recognized government.

• King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and King Fahd International Airport, Dammam, Saudi Arabia: operational with delays and cancellations.

Official Statements

• U.S. Embassy Riyadh, October 15, 2026: “U.S. government employees working in Saudi Arabia require special authorization from Chief of Mission to use any airport in Saudi Arabia following recent missile and UAV attacks on airports in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation extended the suspension of operations at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh through October 17.”

• Yemeni Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani, October 15, 2026: “We reassure the sons of our Yemeni people that the Prime Minister and all members of the government are safe and well” after five missiles targeted the Maashiq Presidential Palace.

• Yemeni Prime Minister Shaya Zindani, October 15, 2026: “The cowardly attack carried out by the Iran-backed Houthi terrorist militia, targeting Maashiq Palace in the interim capital Aden with ballistic missiles, is a continuation of its criminal pattern of striking civilian sites and civilians.”

• Saudi-led coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki, October 15, 2026: Houthi attacks on King Khalid International Airport resulted in 17 deaths and more than 330 injuries; the group has launched 1,104 missiles and 1,135 drones at Saudi Arabia since operations began. Coalition forces destroyed 127 weapons storage facilities.

• Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree, October 15, 2026: The strike targeted “the Saudi enemy’s military operations headquarters in Aden” as part of targeting “Saudi military build-ups wherever they are.”