Susulan siri letupan di Riyadh, diplomat dan sekolah ambil langkah keselamatan
A series of loud explosions shook Riyadh on October 8, forcing diplomats to shelter in their embassies and international schools to move students to basements, hours after Yemen’s Houthi movement claimed a fresh wave of…
Source: Portal Berita RTM · October 9, 2026 at 10:50 PM · AI-assisted report
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RIYADH, 10 OCTOBER 2026 —
A series of loud explosions shook Riyadh on October 8, forcing diplomats to shelter in their embassies and international schools to move students to basements, hours after Yemen’s Houthi movement claimed a fresh wave of attacks on Saudi Arabia including the capital’s international airport.
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Diplomats stationed in Riyadh were directed to remain inside their missions, while at least one international school relocated pupils to underground shelters after the blasts were heard across the city, according to witnesses. A mother told AFP her daughter had called her in a state of great panic after the school activated safety measures. The explosions were among the most intense disturbances heard in Riyadh since the wider West Asia conflict flared following U.S.
and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.
Flight operations at King Khalid International Airport were delayed or cancelled, according to departure boards, and two workers at the King Abdullah Financial District said several companies had evacuated premises and moved staff out of the area. Saudi authorities had issued no official statement on the blasts and had not sent the text-message alerts to residents that were used during previous escalations.
The developments came hours after the Iran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility for a new round of attacks on Saudi Arabia, including targeting Riyadh’s international airport. The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis accused the group of responsibility and warned its actions would not go unpunished.
Saudi civil aviation authorities earlier confirmed that airports in Riyadh and Abha had been targeted on Tuesday and Wednesday, leaving one Egyptian and one Algerian national dead at Abha airport and one Sudanese national dead at Riyadh airport, with 36 other people injured.
The Houthis have intensified attacks on Saudi Arabia since stepping up operations against the internationally recognised Yemeni government, which is backed by Riyadh. Saudi and government forces are struggling to contain Houthi momentum despite counter-offensives aimed at retaking strategic territory. The conflict, now in its ninth year, has returned to one of the most active frontlines in the regional confrontation since the Houthis launched a major offensive against government forces last month.
The rebels are reported to control extensive areas including the approaches to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a critical chokepoint for global trade and Saudi oil exports. Fighting has displaced more than 200,000 Yemenis since July, according to United Nations data. Claims by both sides regarding battlefield developments cannot be independently verified because of limited journalist access and the rapidly changing situation.