Riyadh residents received an air raid alert and heard explosions / A major fire broke out near the airport

Residents of Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, were alerted on the night of Friday to Saturday about a potential air attack and heard two loud explosions. On Saturday, a major fire was reported near Riyadh International Airport. The incidents occurred amid intensified attacks by Houthi rebels against Saudi Arabia, following the resumption of fighting in Yemen.

At around 3:00 a.m. local time, residents of the capital received an alert on their phones about a hostile air threat and were urged to remain indoors. Shortly afterward, two explosions were heard. It is unclear what happened, and Saudi authorities have so far provided no official information about the explosions.

Later, a major fire broke out near Riyadh airport. News agencies reported that a fuel tank belonging to the oil company Aramco may have been set on fire, but the information has not been officially confirmed. FlightRadar24 indicated major disruptions to air traffic, with flights delayed or canceled.

Saudi Arabia provides military support to the Yemeni government in its conflict with the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. So far, drone and missile attacks have mainly targeted oil facilities and military bases in the south of the country and along the Red Sea coast. According to AFP, these are the first reported incidents in the Saudi capital since the resumption of the confrontations.