Saudi airports hit as Gaza strikes kill two amid wider Middle East violence
Fresh attacks on Saudi airports left three people lightly injured, while two people were killed in Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City, as violence across the Middle East continued nearly three years after Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
The conflict has continued almost without interruption and spread across the region, including to Iran, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. Israel also marked three years since the deadliest day in its history, while Israeli authorities demolished a five-storey apartment building in east Jerusalem, drawing condemnation from Palestinians.
Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday that two of its airports were attacked, hours after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they had fired missiles and drones at the kingdom. Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation said airports in Najran and Jizan were hit on Monday, damaging both facilities and leaving three people lightly injured. The statement did not say who was responsible, but it came after the Houthis announced attacks on Saudi oil facilities, airports and military bases on Monday.
Houthi Brigadier General Yahya Saree said on Tuesday that the rebels had also fired towards Abha International Airport as part of their strategy to deter air traffic to Saudi Arabia. The Associated Press said it could not confirm whether the airport in the kingdom's southwest was hit, and Saudi authorities did not immediately comment on the claimed strike.
Saudi Arabia and its allies in Yemen's internationally recognised government have launched a military campaign to reclaim Houthi-controlled territory near the southern tip of the Red Sea, aiming to prevent disruptions to oil exports from the region.
In Gaza City, two Israeli airstrikes killed two people and severely injured at least one other person, according to health officials at Shifa Hospital. The Israeli military said it had targeted militants in both strikes, including one near the municipal park in a densely populated part of the city.
The strike was the latest deadly attack since a ceasefire took effect nearly a year ago. Gaza's Health Ministry said more than 1,460 Palestinians have been killed since then. Its figures are generally considered reliable by the United Nations and independent experts.
Israel began commemorations on Monday for the third anniversary of Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack, the anniversary on the Jewish calendar, with more events scheduled for Wednesday on the international calendar date. In that attack, militants killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostage, setting off a war that later spread across the region.
The attack continues to shape life in Israel, especially in communities near the Gaza border, where people are still dealing with a loss of security. The fighting has also destroyed most of Gaza and killed 74,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in the territory.
In east Jerusalem, Israeli authorities demolished a five-storey building on Tuesday in the latest in a series of home demolitions in predominantly Palestinian neighbourhoods. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir attended the demolition and said Israeli authorities had brought down more than 10,000 structures built without permits over the past year and a half.
Palestinians say getting building permits in east Jerusalem is nearly impossible. Israel annexed east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, and the area is now home to almost 400,000 Palestinians.
Fayez Saeed Khalafawi, who owned an apartment in the demolished building, said his family received notice of the demolition on Monday and that he had asked for a postponement to file an appeal. He said he had applied for four permits and that dozens of residents could be displaced. βThis has become political ... a displacement process. They demolish our house so we put up a tent. Where are we supposed to go?β he said.
The latest developments across Saudi Arabia, Gaza and east Jerusalem underlined how conflict and its aftermath continue to shape the region, from cross-border strikes and casualties to memorials and demolitions.
