Saudi Arabia's aviation authorities said Friday that attacks targeting the international airport in Riyadh and an aircraft there the previous day killed three Saudi citizens. A U.N. human rights chief who chaired an investigation that determined Israel had committed genocide in Gaza won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Friday. Read our full coverage here.
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The attack on an airport in the Saudi capital and an aircraft there killed three Saudi nationals and injured other people on Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said.
Friday's statement from the authority did not identify those responsible for the attack, though Iran-backed Houthi rebels in neighboring Yemen have claimed they targeted the airport with a ballistic missile.
According to Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation, the two strikes targeted the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and a Saudia Airlines aircraft.
Several people were injured, some seriously, and were transferred to a hospital for treatment, said the authority, adding that the attacks also caused material damage. It did not specify the types of weapons used or those responsible.
The authority said it was coordinating with security agencies to assess the damage and take measures to ensure the safety of passengers and workers.
The South African-born jurist and former U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay, who is currently an ad hoc judge at the International Court of Justice, won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for her efforts to promote peace and international law.
Pillay chaired the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, which was created by the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council. The commission a year ago concluded Israel was responsible for genocide in Gaza, with a specific intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza.
Her win is sure to be seen as a high-profile rebuke to U.S. President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who have both rejected the findings led by her commission.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry slammed the award and said on X: “If there were an award for lies, hatred, and blood libels, Navi Pillay wouldn’t just be a contender. She’d be a frontrunner.”
It added that the Nobel prize “isn’t a recognition of justice. It’s the grotesque weaponization of an award to legitimize anti-Israel hatred and prejudice.”
Pakistan International Airlines suspended flights to Riyadh over the evolving situation in the Middle East, an airline spokesman said Friday.
Abdullah Hafeez told The Associated Press that the airline apologized for the inconvenience. He said an update would be provided after assessing the situation on the ground.
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This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.
