A total of 114 flights from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka have been cancelled over the past seven days following attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on installations in Saudi Arabia, including an airport in Riyadh, leaving 17,701 passengers stranded.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) said in a press release issued on Saturday that the cancellations were prompted by security concerns following the attacks.
CAAB Assistant Director (Public Relations) Kawsar Mahmud said 50 of the cancelled flights were direct services, while the remaining 64 were transit flights.
Among the direct flights, Biman Bangladesh Airlines cancelled 18, US-Bangla Airlines 10, Saudia Airlines eight and Riyadh Air 10.
Of the cancelled transit flights, 22 were operated by IndiGo, seven by SalamAir, one by EgyptAir, 14 by Emirates, eight by Qatar Airways, six by flydubai and five by Air India. The disruption follows a series of attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in Saudi Arabia amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
On 10 October, a missile attack on Riyadh airport killed 12 people, including two Bangladeshis, and injured more than 300 others.
Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority disclosed the casualties early on Sunday, saying several of the injured remained in critical condition.
The Saudi coalition blamed the Iran-backed Houthi rebels for the attack.
Before the impact of the attack had subsided, another strike hit King Fahd International Airport on the afternoon of 11 October, killing one person and injuring at least 11 others.
