Diplomats shelter and schools move students underground after Riyadh blasts
Diplomats in Riyadh were ordered to stay inside embassies and international schools sent children to basements after a series of explosions were heard, following a Houthi claim of attacks on Saudi targets.
Explosions reverberated across Riyadh on Thursday, prompting embassies to place diplomatic staff under shelter-in-place orders and prompting at least one international school to move children to its basement. The blasts followed a statement from Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement claiming a fresh attack on Saudi Arabia, adding to recent strikes on Abha and King Khalid airports that killed three civilians and injured dozens.
In the city’s King Abdullah Financial District, some firms began evacuating employees. The incidents come as the Yemen war, now the most active front of the regional conflict, has forced more than 200,000 people from their homes since July, according to UN figures. Saudi civil aviation authorities have warned carriers to steer clear of Saudi airspace, while the Saudi-led coalition vowed retaliation against the Houthi militia. No independent verification of ground changes has been possible due to limited journalist access.
Why it matters
The blasts highlight the expanding threat of Houthi attacks on Saudi soil, affecting diplomats, schools and business districts.
How this story developed
- Oct 3 Fire and thick smoke reported near Saudi Aramco site in Riyadh
- Oct 3 Saudi jets launched 26 strikes on Sanaa following the fire at the Aramco site.
- Oct 4 Houthi spokesperson announced that missiles and drones struck Aramco facilities in Riyadh and eastern Khurais, causing large fires.
- Oct 5 Yemeni government forces announced capture of positions near Bab al‑Mandab and the coalition deployed about 100 combat aircraft.
- Oct 5 Saudi-backed Yemeni forces have taken large parts of the Dhubab district overlooking Bab el-Mandeb, with coalition air support, after months of fighting against Iran-backed Houthis.
- Oct 6 The Saudi‑led coalition said its navy struck weapons caches and naval mines in Hodeida.
- Oct 6 Turkey and Pakistan have moved forces to Saudi Arabia under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement after an emergency meeting in Riyadh.
- Oct 6 Missile and drone attacks hit King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Airport and Najran International Airport, injuring three people and causing limited damage.
- Oct 7 Government‑aligned troops announced the seizure of the highest summit in Jabal Habashi district, Taiz.
- Oct 7 Pakistani Lieutenant General Nauman Mahmud was appointed the pact’s inaugural secretary‑general.
- Oct 7 Houthis launched missiles at Aden International Airport, causing no casualties.
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