World

Saudis say Riyadh airport partly reopens

Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport following the attacks
 
Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport following the attacks


Saudi Arabia ​said its main airport resumed operations at two terminals on Sunday even as Yemen's Ansar Allah vowed to keep striking the facility, which they called a 'military target'.
King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh had halted operations on October 10 following an attack claimed by the Ansar Allah that killed 13 people, the deadliest in the kingdom in more than a decade.
Saudi Arabia said it intercepted another wave of missiles and drones on Sunday as fighting ⁠with the militant group continued unabated.
The Houthis said they had launched attacks on the air hub among other sites ⁠in the kingdom, including in Khamis Mushait and Jazan. It was not immediately clear if those were the strikes the kingdom said it had blocked.
The conflict has become an increasingly destabilising element in the US-Israeli offensive against Iran, turning US ally Saudi Arabia into a pressure point ‌in the wider war.
FLIGHT TRACKING DATA SHOWS LITTLE TRAFFIC
After Saudi ​authorities announced the partial resumption ⁠of operations at the airport, Ansar Allah spokesperson Yahya Saree vowed the facility would 'never be safe' ​and urged airlines, airport staff and travellers not ‌to use it.
Late on Saturday, the airport said Terminal 1 would be designated for domestic flights and Terminal 2 for international flights operated by national carriers starting Sunday.
Despite the ​announcement, flight tracking data from Flightradar24 showed little traffic at the airport on Sunday.
The Saudi-led coalition said earlier this month that the Ansar Allah had carried out 20 attacks on the airport between October 1 and 11.
MISSILE AND DRONE ATTACKS CONTINUE
Saudi civil defense said on Sunday that shrapnel from the interception of two ballistic missiles launched by the Ansaar Allah over Khamis Mushait and Ahad Rafidah injured two ‌people and damaged residential buildings and vehicles.
Civil defense authorities earlier issued emergency alerts for Riyadh and the cities of ​Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan and Najran on Sunday, before saying minutes later that the danger had passed.
The coalition said two drones ​and a ‌ballistic ⁠missile were launched towards Riyadh, and a cruise missile towards the southern city of Khamis Mushait.

It later said it intercepted 10 ballistic missiles fired towards southern Saudi Arabia.
The Ansar Allah said they attacked the airport and Saudi oil facilities on Saturday. ​Saudi authorities did not comment directly on the Ansar Allah statements.