Singapore condemns Houthi strikes after attacks on Saudi airport kill 3
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Smoke rising from King Khalid Airport in Riyadh after strikes by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, on Oct 8.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Singapore’s MFA condemned Houthi attacks on civilian aviation infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. It said the attacks, which killed and injured civilians, were “unacceptable and cannot be justified”.
- Saudi Arabia said three people were killed and others injured in attacks on Riyadh airport, while Saudia said one pilot was killed and an aircraft was damaged at King Khalid International Airport.
- Singapore Airlines and Scoot extended flight cancellations to the Middle East until December, as tensions rise after earlier Houthi attacks on Saudi energy sites and Red Sea shipping.
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SINGAPORE – The Republic condemns the recent attacks by the Houthis on civilian aviation infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement on the Middle East situation on Oct 9.
In the statement, an MFA spokesperson said such attacks by the Yemeni Islamist movement, which have led to the loss of lives and injured civilians, are “unacceptable and cannot be justified”.
This comes after the group launched a new wave of attacks, including on the main airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
In a statement posted on social media platform X on Oct 9, Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said three people were killed and several were injured in two attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh the day before.
The first attack targeted airport facilities, while the second struck an aircraft belonging to Saudi flag carrier Saudia Airlines.
Saudia Airlines said on Oct 9 that one of its pilots was killed and an aircraft was damaged in the attacks.
The fighting, a spillover from the wider US-Iran conflict, has revived a complex longstanding war in Yemen.
The Houthis say they are targeting Saudi Arabia over its support for government forces in Yemen’s reignited civil war.
Riyadh, which leads an international coalition that has been fighting the Houthis since 2015, maintains it is backing an offensive by Yemen’s UN-recognised government to reclaim lost territory from the group.
The widening Middle East conflict has continued to disrupt travel, with the recent Houthi strikes forcing hundreds of flight cancellations to Riyadh.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) postponed the launch of its services to the Saudi capital until March 28, 2027, citing the conflict in the region. The national carrier had announced earlier in February that it would launch direct flights to Riyadh from June 2, before later moving the start date to Sept 1, and then to Dec 1.
SIA and its budget arm Scoot have also extended their Middle East flight cancellations until December.
MFA previously condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia in July, urging all parties to exercise restraint and avoid actions that could further escalate tensions, after strikes on Saudi energy infrastructure and commercial vessels in the Red Sea.