Saudi Arabia Weighs Riyadh Airport Reopening Amid Houthi Attacks
WHO:
ABC News - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran’s policies would remain in place regardless of whether another war occurs.
ABC News - Libya’s rival-government Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah rejected President Trump’s characterization of Libya as “terror-infested” and said he rejected “any affront” to Libya and its people.
ABC News - The AID Coalition said tens of thousands of Israelis living abroad were expected to return for the vote; Israel has more than 7.3 million registered voters.
ABC News - Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid International Airport, Houthi rebels in Yemen, and Saudi military spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki are named in the airport reopening and interception reports.
ABC News - Israel’s military imposed new restrictions on Palestinian laborers working in Israeli settlements; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership and security policies were described as central to the election.
Al Jazeera - Yemen’s internationally recognised government Transport Ministry accused the Houthis of attacking Aden International Airport. Yemen’s army spokesman Colonel Majed Abdullah al-Nazili reported government operations against Houthi forces.
Al Jazeera - Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, condemned Houthi attacks as “heinous” and said they showed “a blatant disregard for the lives and security of civilians.”
WHAT:
ABC News - Araghchi warned the United States against renewing strikes on Iran and said Tehran was ready to cooperate with neighboring Arab nations in the Persian Gulf.
ABC News - Trump accused Democrats of trying to open the United States to “armies of migrants from terror-infested countries like Libya, Yemen, Haiti, Somalia.”
ABC News - Israel closed several crossings in the occupied West Bank.
ABC News - Saudi Arabia reopened King Khalid International Airport’s terminals 1 and 2 for domestic and international flights after Houthi strikes had knocked the facility out of service. The airport had previously resumed limited domestic flights.
ABC News - Al-Malki said Saudi air defenses intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile and drone fired toward the capital, as well as 10 ballistic missiles headed toward the southern region.
ABC News - Houthi strikes on a complex housing two other airport terminals killed 17 people and wounded more than 330.
Bloomberg Markets - Saudi Arabia’s main airport was preparing to reopen after operations were disrupted by a series of Houthi attacks.
Al Jazeera - Yemen’s Transport Ministry said two ballistic missiles targeted Aden International Airport, calling it the “fourth such attack this month.” Authorities said the coastguard headquarters and another building were hit; the Houthis claimed attacks on al-Nasr camp and Aden’s naval military base.
Al Jazeera - Yemen’s army said a Houthi missile malfunctioned and killed three people when it fell on a family home in Sanaa.
Al Jazeera - The Houthis denied targeting Mecca and Medina, calling that allegation a “huge lie,” and said their targets were three Saudi airports, oil infrastructure, and an airbase.
Al Jazeera - Yemen’s army said government forces conducted more than 700 “targeting operations” and “neutralis[ed]” 300 Houthi fighters, disabling military vehicles. Al Jazeera said it could not independently verify the figures.
ABC News - Israel continued arrests and demolitions in Hebron after an attack killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded three. Hebron’s municipality said about 2,200 people were displaced.
WHERE:
ABC News - The Saudi airport is in Riyadh; the strikes also targeted Saudi Arabia’s southern region.
Al Jazeera - Reported fighting and strikes involved Aden, Sanaa, Hodeidah, Taiz, Mecca, and Medina.
ABC News - Israel’s operation and restrictions were in the occupied West Bank, including Hebron.
WHY:
ABC News - Israel’s election is the first since the 2023 Hamas-led attacks and ensuing regional wars; Israeli citizens generally must vote in person, with limited exceptions for diplomats and certain official emissaries abroad.
ABC News - The airport reopening followed strikes that had disrupted airport operations; Houthi attacks continued against Saudi targets.
Al Jazeera - Yemen’s Transport Ministry warned the Aden airport attacks threatened civil aviation safety and had humanitarian and economic consequences for people relying on the airport.
HOW:
Al Jazeera - Saudi civil defence said two ballistic missiles were launched toward Mecca and Medina and intercepted; it warned of falling shrapnel.
Al Jazeera - Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV said Saudi coalition air strikes killed civilians in Sanaa and Hodeidah; Al Jazeera said the claim was unverified and Riyadh had not commented.
Al Jazeera - The Houthis have repeatedly used long-range strikes against Saudi energy infrastructure and airports since a fragile ceasefire agreed in 2022 fell apart in July.
(UPDATED October 25, 2026 14:57 UTC)
Saudi Arabia has reopened terminals one and two at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport after Houthi strikes disrupted operations. Saudi military spokesman Turki al-Malki says defenses intercepted a missile and drone aimed at the capital, along with 10 missiles headed toward the southern region. Earlier Houthi strikes on another airport complex killed 17 people and wounded more than 330. In Yemen, the government accused the Houthis of attacking Aden International Airport with two missiles, calling it the fourth such attack this month and warning of risks to civilian flights. Yemen’s army also reported fighting and operations against Houthi forces. In Israel, the military has imposed new restrictions on Palestinian laborers and closed several West Bank crossings, while arrests and demolitions continue in Hebron after an attack killed two Israeli soldiers.
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(UPDATED October 25, 2026 11:57 UTC)
Saudi Arabia has reopened terminals 1 and 2 at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport after Houthi strikes disrupted operations. Saudi military spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki said air defenses intercepted a missile and drone aimed at the capital, along with 10 ballistic missiles headed toward the south. Earlier strikes killed 17 people and wounded more than 330 at a complex housing two other airport terminals. In Yemen, the government accused the Houthis of firing two missiles at Aden International Airport, calling it the fourth attack there this month and warning of risks to civilian flights. Yemen’s army said a malfunctioning Houthi missile killed three people when it hit a home in Sanaa. The Houthis denied targeting Mecca and Medina, while Saudi Arabia said missiles aimed at those cities were intercepted. Separately, Israeli forces continued arrests and demolitions in Hebron, where about 2,200 people were displaced.