The Junior Daily · ages 9–11 · 2026-10-17
Why Are Airports Being Targeted in Saudi Arabia?
Saudi officials say attacks on airports from October 6 to 11 killed at least 20 people.
Saudi Arabia is in a fight with the Houthis, a group that controls Sanaa and parts of north-west Yemen. Yemen is the country just south of Saudi Arabia. For years a truce set up by the United Nations mostly held. It has now collapsed.
The Houthi leader describes the attacks as tit-for-tat. He said the policy is “airports for airports, ports for ports.” This came after Sanaa’s airport was hit. The Saudi-backed Yemeni government said that strike aimed to stop an Iranian plane from landing there.
Saudi aviation officials counted at least 20 deaths and 356 injuries at airports from October 6 to 11. The worst strike hit Riyadh’s main airport on October 10 and killed at least 12 people. On Wednesday the Saudi-led coalition said it stopped a missile fired toward Riyadh.
Why it matters
Airports connect people to family, work and help. When they are attacked, many people far from the fighting are affected.
THE RED SEA. Saudi Arabia and Yemen sit on the eastern shore of the Red Sea.