Kingdom Centre mandates remote work after spate of Houthi strikes in Riyadh
The 99-storey Kingdom Centre in Riyadh ordered all office staff to work remotely indefinitely following a series of Houthi attacks on Saudi targets.
Following a wave of Houthi attacks, the Kingdom Centre skyscraper in central Riyadh instructed every office employee to work from home until further notice. The order was issued without explanation but coincides with a recent missile assault that killed 13 people at King Khalid International Airport and claims that an Apache helicopter was downed near the Yemeni border in Najran. Tenants of the 99-storey tower include Merrill Lynch, McKinsey and the International Monetary Fund, though the shopping mall at its foot remains operational.
Saudi security forces said they intercepted two drones over Riyadh, a third over the oil-rich Eastern Province, and two ballistic missiles in the south. The broader conflict has intensified, with the Houthis targeting Saudi oil facilities, Red Sea tankers and the airport, while the Saudi-led coalition continues air raids on Houthi positions.
How this was covered
- Right-leaning outlets covered this 69m later
Why it matters
The remote-work order highlights how the escalating Saudi-Yemen conflict is disrupting business operations in the kingdom's capital.
How the sides frame it
MODERATE AGREEMENTLeft-leaning coverage frames the directive mainly as a safety response to a surge of Houthi attacks, while centrist and right-leaning coverage stress that no reason was given for the mandatory remote-working order and embed it in the wider Saudi-Houthis war context.
LEFT
The remote-work directive is presented as a direct reaction to escalating Houthi attacks on Riyadh.
CENTER
The order is described as a mandatory, unexplained measure framed within the broader Saudi-Houthis conflict and recent pilot-crash casualties.
RIGHT
The shutdown is portrayed as an unexplained, mandatory remote-work move linked to the ongoing war and recent Houthi attacks.
The left emphasises
- shift to remote work after attack
- surge in attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi movement
The right emphasises
- iconic skyscraper shut, remote work mandated
- management gave no reason for the order
- war context with recent Houthi attacks and pilot crash
How this story developed
- Oct 5 Yemeni government troops capture key positions on Bab el-Mandeb Strait
- Oct 12 Airport shutdown extended to Oct 17 for safety checks.
- Oct 13 Delta postponed its inaugural Atlanta‑Riyadh flight.
- Oct 13 IndiGo and Akasa Air have prolonged the cancellation of flights to Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Madinah until October 17 because of heightened security threats in the region.
- Oct 13 Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps reported hitting a supertanker attempting to exit the Strait of Hormuz.
- Oct 13 Saudi civil defence alerts stopped operating before the attacks, leaving no public warnings.
- Oct 13 A missile hit the administrative building of Saudi Aramco in Dhahran, causing a minor blaze but no injuries.
- Oct 14 The coalition struck Sanaa’s al‑Suhaba fuel facility and warned nearby residents to evacuate.
- Oct 15 Air India joins IndiGo and Akasa Air in suspending Saudi flights.
- Oct 15 Saudi‑led coalition launched air strikes on Houthi positions in Sanaa, breaking the 2022 ceasefire
- Oct 16 Missiles hit Aden airport and a ballistic missile targeting Yanbu was intercepted.
- Oct 17 President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt stands ready to defend Saudi Arabia if requested and called for an emergency parliamentary session to authorize such action.
- Oct 18 Airlines have extended their flight suspensions to October 17.
- Oct 18 Egyptian parliament scheduled an emergency plenary meeting to consider a defence mandate for Saudi Arabia.
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