Fighting between Iran-backed Houthi forces and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government has escalated into attacks on Saudi territory, with strikes on airports, including Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport, wounding more than 300 people. CCTV footage from the airport showed hundreds of travellers caught in the blasts that tore through the travel hub.
The attacks are the latest exchanges in the 12-year Yemeni civil war. Saudi Arabia has stepped up its military involvement in recent weeks, launching strikes against the Houthis and backing a counteroffensive after the group seized strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month. The Houthi-run foreign ministry said on Sunday that further Saudi military action would trigger a stronger response, and that its actions would be guided by the principle of reciprocity.
All flights to and from Riyadh have been suspended or diverted. Qatar Airways and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad have cancelled flights to Riyadh and Dammam since the weekend. The Australian government's Smartraveller service warned that military conflict in the region "may result in widespread movement restrictions, airspace closures, flight cancellations and other travel disruptions", and advised against travel to the country's southern provinces and any area within 30 kilometres of the border with Yemen.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said on X that Australia condemned the strikes, including those on Riyadh airport, which she said had "stolen the lives of so many innocent people", and that Houthi attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure "are unacceptable and must cease".
Marek Bekier, a lecturer in air traffic management at the University of New South Wales, said Riyadh was not a major hub for Australian transit passengers but remained an important regional airport. "Safe operations remain possible on appropriately assessed routes, although current aviation advisories recommend avoiding some areas," he said. "These assessments need to change as the situation develops; an open airspace alone is not a guarantee of safety."
The conflict adds to disruption on routes between Australia and Europe. Airlines have already been adjusting to the closure of Iran's airspace since the US-Iran war began in February, with many flights now going through Central Asia and the Caucasus, or over the Gulf States and northern Saudi Arabia.