The Indian Embassy has issued advisories urging Indian nationals in Saudi Arabia to remain alert, follow instructions issued by local authorities and take shelter indoors during aerial attacks. Representative file image used.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
Two people, including an Indian national, were killed and eight others injured on Wednesday (October 21, 2026) in a Houthi attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, Saudi Arabia’s eastern oil hub, the kingdom’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said.
The Indian Embassy in Riyadh confirmed the Indian national’s death. “Saudi authorities have informed that one Indian national was among two people who unfortunately lost their lives in the attack on Dammam airport yesterday night and two Indian nationals were injured,” the Indian embassy wrote in a social media post on Thursday (October 22, 2026). “We are ascertaining further details and contacting the affected families. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of the deceased and we wish speedy recovery of the injured.”
Airport operations and air traffic had returned to normal after brief disruptions, the Saudi aviation authority said.
Separately, the Houthis (Ansar Allah) claimed that Saudi Arabia had attacked a yacht carrying Indians in the Red Sea, adding that they were conducting rescue operations.
The Houthis, who control northern and northwestern Yemen, including the capital, Sana’a, said they launched missile and drone attacks at the Saudi Ministry of Defence in Riyadh and the Dammam airport. They also struck a facility of Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s state-owned petroleum and natural gas company, in Yanbu, and the Abha International Airport in the southwest.
If Saudi Arabia continues to attack Yemen, “we will resort to major options we did not want to take, and we hold it responsible for the consequences,” the militants said, according to the Houthi-aligned Almasirah television.
The Iran-aligned rebels, who captured Sana’a in 2014 and expanded their territorial control along Yemen’s entire Red Sea coast last month, also claimed that the Saudi forces on Thursday targeted an Indian yacht near Zuqar Island in Red Sea, carrying 14 Indians.
“The [Houthi] Armed Forces are carrying out rescue operations for those on board, with further details to be provided later,” they said, according to Almasirah. “It indicated that this reckless behavior by the Saudi enemy threatens international navigation in the Red Sea, requiring the international community to stop the Saudi enemy from these reckless actions.”
The targeting of a civilian vessel carrying Indian nationals raises serious concerns about the safety of international navigation and the potential for civilian casualties, they added.
Saudi Arabia started bombing Yemen in 2015 after the Houthis captured Sana’a a few months earlier. In 2022, Riyadh and the Houthi leadership agreed to a ceasefire as part of a broader Iran-Saudi rapprochement. The ceasefire collapsed in July this year, in the midst of the U.S.-Iran war, as the Sana’a airport was bombed by Saudi Arabia to prevent an Iranian airline carrying a Houthi delegation from landing. The Houthis then started attacking Saudi Arabia and launched a ground offensive against the Saudi-backed government in Yemen. They have also announced a blockade of Saudi ports in the Red Sea.
In recent weeks, the Houthis have stepped up attacks against Saudi airports and energy infrastructure, while the kingdom has intensified its air strikes on the Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen.
On Thursday (October 22, 2026), the Houthis said they will continue their operations against Saudi Arabia. “There will be siege for siege and escalation for escalation,” they said, adding that the strikes would continue until Saudi Arabia lifts its blockade of the Houthi-held areas of Yemen.
Helpline numbers shared by the Ministry of External Affairs
Embassy of India, Riyadh: Telephone: +966-554412016; +966-542126784; Toll-free: 8002471234 (Calls from within KSA only); WhatsApp: +966-536216082 (Messages only)
Consulate General of India, Jeddah: Telephone: +966-12-2614093; +966-556122301; WhatsApp: +966-536209704 (Messages only)
Published – October 22, 2026 03:28 pm IST
