UAE carrier flydubai has joined Saudi airlines Saudia and flynas in cancelling flights to and from Abha Airport after a Houthi missile and drone attack targeted the Saudi airport late on Monday.
Flights to Saudi Arabia’s Abha city from the UAE and other regional destinations have been cancelled following the Houthi attack on Abha Airport late on Monday.
Data from Flightradar24 showed that several flights were cancelled on Monday evening, with further cancellations reported on Tuesday amid renewed regional tensions involving Yemen and Saudi Arabia.
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Saudi Arabia’s national carrier Saudia cancelled flights from Abha to Riyadh and Jeddah, while budget airline flynas also suspended its services to Jeddah on Tuesday morning.
Several inbound flights to Abha scheduled for Tuesday morning were also cancelled from other Saudi cities, including flynas services from Jeddah and Saudia flights from Jeddah and Riyadh.
Dubai Airports data showed that two flydubai flights scheduled to depart from Dubai International Airport’s Terminal 2 to Saudi Arabia’s Abha on Tuesday, July 14, at 10.25am and 4.05pm, were cancelled.
The cancellations followed a Houthi attack targeting Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia on Monday, carried out hours after airstrikes hit Sanaa airport in Yemen.
Yahya Saree, spokesman for the Houthi military, said in a video statement that the group had launched an operation against Abha International Airport using ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Saree also warned airlines against operating flights into Saudi airspace “until the blockade on Sanaa International Airport is lifted.”
Tensions had escalated in recent days after the Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of targeting an Iranian aircraft that had landed in Sanaa earlier this month before departing with a delegation onboard.
The group had previously warned that it would target Saudi airports and strategic infrastructure if Riyadh violated Yemen’s airspace or launched further attacks.
