A dozen civilians were injured at the Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia on Thursday in a terror attack, according to the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen.
The wounded people were hit by falling debris after Saudi air defenses destroyed an incoming drone carrying a bomb launched by Houthi rebels. Two of the people injured are Saudi citizens, four are Bangladeshi, three are Nepali residents, one is from Sri Lanka, another from the Philippines, and one from India, according to the Associated Press.
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The attack occurred near the Saudi Arabia-Yemen border, where the former has fought against Iranian-backed Houthis who toppled the Yemini government from power in 2015.
“The United States strongly condemns today’s terrorist attack against Abha in Saudi Arabia, which injured at least a dozen innocent civilians,” said President Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan in a statement. “The Houthis have claimed responsibility for this attack, and we will work with our Saudi and international partners to hold them accountable.”
A day before the attack, Biden spoke with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud. The two leaders discussed the “Iranian-enabled attacks by the Houthis against civilian targets in Saudi Arabia,” and Biden “underscored the U.S. commitment to support Saudi Arabia in the defense of its people and territory from these attacks and full support for UN-led efforts to end the war in Yemen,” according to a readout from the White House.
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“The President noted his commitment to ensuring that Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon and briefed the King on ongoing multilateral talks to reestablish constraints on Iran’s nuclear program,” it continued.
The Houthis frequently target the area near the border, but most drones and missiles are intercepted, according to the Jerusalem Post. The coalition also regularly strikes targets it says are Houthi military spots in Yemen.
