Iran International
The deadly attacks on Riyadh’s main airport mirror Iranian warnings to disrupt regional air travel in response to US sanctions, analysts say, while serving the Houthis’ own goal of pressuring Saudi Arabia over its support for rival forces in Yemen.
A Houthi missile strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Saturday killed 13 people and injured more than 300, according to Saudi authorities. A follow-up attack on Sunday killed one and wounded 11 others, prompting officials to extend flight suspensions on Monday.
Among the dead were an Indian national traveling with his family for Umrah, an Egyptian flight attendant and a Saudi pilot. Footage released by Saudi authorities shows passengers waiting inside a terminal before an explosion sends them fleeing through smoke and debris.
The attacks came weeks after Tehran warned it would disrupt regional aviation if US sanctions isolated Iranian airlines. No public evidence has established that Iran ordered the strikes, but analysts said they were consistent with its threats.
Yemeni-American analyst Fatima Abo Alasrar described the escalation as part of a familiar pattern in which Tehran seeks to export its economic hardship to its neighbors.
"Just as the United States said that it's going to conduct Operation Economic Outcast and impose sanctions on Tehran, Tehran is also doing economic outcast for Saudi Arabia through this pressure," said Abo Alasrar, a scholar at Ideology Machine.
Tehran's aviation threats
Senior Iranian officials issued the warnings as Washington intensified its economic campaign against Tehran.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently announced measures aimed at shutting Iranian airlines out of global airspace, warning foreign airports, ground crews and fuel suppliers that aiding Iranian carriers would trigger exclusion from the dollar-based financial system.
"If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets, or you will be knocked out of the dollar system," Bessent said.
Tehran responded with direct threats.
"If Iran cannot fly and receive airport services, no country in the region will have that possibility either," Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, wrote on social media.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, similarly warned that neighboring airports would be forced to shut down if they complied with US restrictions.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, Iran Program director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, placed the subsequent airport attacks within Tehran’s broader efforts to recover regional influence.
"This is a game of cross-domain escalation," he told Iran International.
"We can't forget that the strategic backdrop is Iran losing leverage in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz and trying to gain it back via proxy."
Iran has played a major role in developing the Houthis’ military capabilities since the group seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, in 2014.
A 2024 United Nations report found that the Houthis’ transformation into a powerful military organization was made possible by weapons transfers, training and technical assistance from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iraqi specialists.
In July, Reuters reported that Iran had flown IRGC commanders, military advisers and missile- and drone-related equipment into Yemen during the current war, according to sources familiar with the transfers.
Tehran has repeatedly denied supplying the Houthis with weapons, while the group maintains that it makes its own military decisions."
The battle for Bab al-Mandab
The airport attacks coincide with military setbacks for the Houthis along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, where Saudi-backed government forces have recaptured territory near the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Abo Alasrar said the Houthis have an immediate objective of their own: forcing Riyadh to reconsider its support for Yemen’s internationally recognized government.
"The Houthis have both Tehran's intentions and their own aims on the ground," she said.
In her assessment, a sustained government advance toward Hodeidah, a major port on Yemen’s western coast, could threaten Houthi access to the sea and restrict routes used to move weapons and military components into their territory.
Losing their remaining coastal access could leave the Houthis effectively landlocked, a development Abo Alasrar described as a worst-case scenario for both the group and Tehran.
While Riyadh has strong incentives to de-escalate, she warned that concessions intended to secure a short-term settlement could allow the Houthis to rebuild their military capabilities.
Restoring access to airports or coastal territory, she argued, could reopen routes for smuggling missile components and other military supplies, setting the stage for another round of escalation.
A battle for public opinion
The killing and endangering of civilians in Saudi Arabia also risk undermining the Houthis’ efforts to portray themselves as defenders of Muslims, Abo Alasrar said.
"It exposed the hypocrisy of the Houthis, who have continuously been saying death to America, death to Israel, but then they're lobbing the missiles towards Muslim population," she said.
Images of passengers fleeing explosions have also become part of an information war unfolding alongside the military confrontation.
"The Saudi news channel Al Arabiya has adopted an unusually graphic approach, broadcasting harrowing footage of explosions and destruction reportedly inside Riyadh airport," Middle East political analyst and journalist Mohamed Fahmy told Iran International.
Fahmy said footage of the attacks, along with social media clips of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman offering condolences to a slain pilot’s father, appeared intended to prepare Saudis for further confrontation and reinforce confidence in the kingdom’s leadership.
Increased firepower alone was unlikely to end the confrontation, he said. A durable outcome would require deterrence, intelligence cooperation, political engagement and a military strategy for ending Yemen’s civil war.
Diplomacy amid escalation
Even as the Houthis continue their attacks, Tehran has sought to present itself as a potential diplomatic intermediary.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, on Sunday about the conflict.
A senior Houthi official subsequently claimed that Saudi Arabia had considered proposals for a temporary ceasefire, although the group rejected them.
Fahmy said Tehran’s diplomatic outreach allows it to project an image of regional engagement while distancing itself from the actions of its armed partners.
Amnesty International on Tuesday condemned Iran’s execution of five men in cases linked to the January protests within one week and called for coordinated international pressure on Tehran to halt further executions.
The five men were Ali Hemmati Sistanian, Alireza Raisi, Alireza Sepahi, Majid Nikandish and Siavash Jamshidi Kheirabadi. They were executed between September 30 and October 5.
“The arbitrary executions of these five young men serves as another chilling reminder of how the Iranian authorities weaponize the death penalty,” Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said.
Amnesty said the cases followed a recurring pattern in which defendants were denied lawyers during interrogations, allegations of torture were not investigated and televised confessions were used as evidence in trials before Revolutionary Courts.
Five executions in six days
Alireza Raisi and Alireza Sepahi were executed in Isfahan on October 5 over the Alikhani Square case, a mass prosecution stemming from clashes during the January 8 protests in the city.
Iran’s judiciary said defendants in the case were accused of offenses including blocking roads, damaging property, arson and involvement in the deaths of four members of the security forces.
Amnesty said Sepahi had reported prolonged solitary confinement, beatings and electric shocks while in detention and had been denied access to a lawyer during the investigative stage.
Majid Nikandish and Ali Hemmati Sistanian were executed in Mashhad on September 30 over protests there on January 8. Amnesty said televised confessions obtained while the men lacked access to lawyers were later used against them.
Siavash Jamshidi Kheirabadi was executed in Shahr-e Kord on October 3 after being convicted of charges including moharebeh, or “waging war against God,” over accusations that he fired a weapon during protests.
Amnesty calls for international pressure
Amnesty said at least 34 people have been executed in cases related to the January protests and warned that scores of others remain at risk of politically motivated executions.
The group called for coordinated diplomatic pressure on Tehran to halt further executions and urged the UN Security Council to refer the situation in Iran to the International Criminal Court.
A protest over the name of a newly created county in central Iran turned violent after security forces moved to disperse demonstrators, with videos sent to Iran International capturing gunfire, tear gas and injured protesters.
The gathering took place on Sunday in Meymeh, a city in Isfahan province, where residents have objected to the new administrative district being named “Meymeh and Vazvan” rather than simply “Meymeh.”
Videos received by Iran International show demonstrators in the streets, tear gas in the area and people with bloodied clothing receiving medical treatment. Gunshots can also be heard, although it was not immediately clear what type of ammunition was used.
The number of people injured or detained remains unclear.
Local dispute over county name
Residents of Meymeh had campaigned for around two decades for their district to be upgraded to county status. The government eventually approved the change but in August 2024 named the new county Meymeh and Vazvan, combining the names of two cities.
Some Meymeh residents argue that their city’s historical identity should be reflected in the county name and have repeatedly called for the decision to be reversed. Officials have said the name should also recognize Vazvan.
The dispute culminated in Sunday’s street protest shortly before the new county administration was due to begin operating.
Footage showed some protesters carrying Islamic Republic flags and portraits of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, underscoring the local nature of the dispute rather than an explicitly anti-government demonstration.
Security presence increases
The protest continued into the evening before security forces intervened and fired tear gas, according to videos and information received by Iran International.
Witnesses told Iran International that several protesters were wounded and detained, including some who were later taken into custody at hospitals. Iran International could not independently establish the number of arrests or verify the circumstances of each reported injury.
Reports from Meymeh on Tuesday indicated an increased security presence following the confrontation.
The Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday that five members of an alleged kidnapping cell and one of its personnel were killed near Zahedan, while separate reports said more than 20 members of an Iran-backed militia were killed or wounded in the area.
The IRGC Ground Force’s Quds regional headquarters said its forces located the group in the Kurin area after an engineer working on construction projects west of Zahedan was abducted a day earlier.
It said five members of the group were killed, the hostage was freed and one member of its forces was killed during the operation.
According to the statement, the kidnappers had links to armed groups and intended to take the engineer across Iran’s border into a neighboring country.
The statement supersedes an earlier report by the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim news agency, which had put the number of people killed in the operation at three.
More than 20 Fatemiyoun fighters reported killed or wounded in Taftan
Haalvsh, which covers developments in Sistan-Baluchestan, said more than 20 Fatemiyoun members were killed or wounded in fighting that continued for more than seven hours on Tuesday in the mountainous Chah Ahmad and Arzan Tak areas of Taftan County.
Citing local sources and eyewitnesses, Haalvsh said the first group sent into the area at around 6 a.m. included Fatemiyoun fighters traveling on about 18 motorcycles from a nearby base.
The outlet said armed men who had taken positions in the mountains opened heavy fire on the group. It said the dead and wounded were later removed in military vehicles.
Fatemiyoun is an Iran-backed Shiite militia made up largely of Afghan fighters and organized with support from the Revolutionary Guards. Its members have fought alongside Iranian forces in regional conflicts.
Haalvsh said reinforcements arrived in more than 40 vehicles, accompanied by reconnaissance and combat drones.
The outlet reported continued mortar and heavy-weapons fire toward the surrounding heights after some of the armed men withdrew from the main area of fighting. It also said residents could hear drones overhead.
The identities and affiliation of the armed men involved in the Taftan clashes remained unclear.
Attacks on police and military personnel
Sistan-Baluchestan, which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan, has seen a series of armed attacks and security operations in recent weeks.
On October 9, Iranian state media reported that Nosrat Eftekhari, a senior police official responsible for cultural and social affairs in the province, was killed in a roadside bombing on the Cheshmeh Ziarat road near Zahedan.
A day earlier, a member of a police commando unit was killed in an armed attack near Nosratabad. A separate attack on a vehicle carrying Iranian Army personnel near Nikshahr killed another serviceman.
On September 23, an armed confrontation in Saravan killed Hossein Zarifi, a commander with the IRGC’s Sajjad base, according to the Guards’ Quds regional headquarters. Haalvsh separately reported that another intelligence official was killed and at least 13 other personnel were wounded.
At least five members of the Fatemiyoun, an Iran-backed Shiite militia made up largely of Afghan fighters and organized with support from the Revolutionary Guards, were also reported killed in an armed attack near Zahedan on October 2.
More than 90 killed since March - HRANA
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said Monday that at least 94 people had been killed and 33 wounded in 63 armed incidents across southeastern Iran between March 31 and October 10.
HRANA said attacks on patrol vehicles and military convoys were the most common incidents it recorded, followed by targeted shootings. It also reported increased use of mines, rocket-propelled grenades and heavier weapons by armed groups, while government forces used drones, artillery and armored vehicles in some operations.
The group said the People’s Fighters Front, an alliance formed in December 2025 that includes Jaish al-Adl and several smaller Baluch armed groups, had taken responsibility for six incidents documented in its report. Most attacks remained unattributed or could not be reliably linked to a particular group, HRANA said.
Sistan-Baluchestan, one of Iran’s poorest provinces and home to much of the country’s Sunni Baluch minority, has long seen armed confrontations between government forces and Baluch groups. Recent incidents have increasingly involved attacks on police posts, military vehicles and senior security personnel.
The Islamic Republic’s threats to target undersea internet cables in the Persian Gulf drew mockery and criticism from readers who told Iran International that such attacks could deepen Iran’s isolation and damage its own connectivity.
The responses followed a warning by Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, that communications cables, data centers and artificial intelligence facilities in the region could become targets if war resumes.
Hossein Shariatmadari, editor of the hardline Kayhan newspaper and the supreme leader’s representative at the publication, backed the warning and advocated cutting international fiber-optic cables to confront the United States and its allies.
“The threat to cut internet cables will end up like the Strait of Hormuz story: the whole region will have internet except Iran. Perhaps that is their aim,” one reader wrote.
Others mocked the proposal as an incentive to turn to satellite internet, with one calling it “the best advertisement for Starlink.”
‘Give him the wire cutters’
Much of the criticism focused on Shariatmadari, who wrote on Monday that nearly seven major international internet cable systems pass through the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. He claimed even minor damage could disable more than 80 percent of commercial, banking, military and AI-related communications and disrupt the global internet.
Some readers questioned his technical understanding of the infrastructure he was proposing to attack.
“Give him the wire cutters. The strongman wants to cut the wires,” one wrote.
“Do you even know what fiber optics are?” another asked.
Other responses suggested the threats would encourage greater interest in Starlink, which provides internet access through low-Earth-orbit satellites and a dedicated terminal, without relying on local fixed or mobile networks.
“Starlink will surely support this too,” one reader quipped.
A reader from Firuzkuh wrote: “By the time you pick up the pliers to cut off the internet, Elon Musk will have activated Starlink. This remark alone gives him a good incentive to bring high-speed internet into Iran.”
‘Do you know anything about building?’
Other readers contrasted Shariatmadari’s proposal with what they described as his lack of interest in developing the country.
“Have you ever, even once in your life, thought about building and developing the country, now that you are threatening fiber-optic cables on the seabed?” one asked.
Another put it more briefly: “Do you know anything about building and development?”
One reader questioned the influence wielded by the newspaper editor: “The country has become so lawless that when Kayhan’s editor gives his opinion, you would think he was the supreme leader.”
Several messages drew comparisons with Shariatmadari’s earlier support for closing the Strait of Hormuz, warning that another attempt to disrupt regional infrastructure could backfire on Iran.
Shariatmadari has repeatedly advocated using communications infrastructure against Washington. On September 3, he urged Iran’s army and Revolutionary Guards to turn fiber-optic cables in the Persian Gulf into a means of confronting the United States.
Other hardline outlets have also promoted pressure on technology companies. In May, Tasnim News Agency called for charging foreign companies fees for cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz and requiring technology giants, including Meta, Amazon and Microsoft, to operate under Iranian laws.
Some Iranian officials have privately suggested Tehran could send forces into neighbouring countries if the United States launches new strikes, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the warnings.
The newspaper did not identify the officials, specify which countries could be targeted by such incursions or provide details about when the warnings were delivered.
The report said Iranian officials have warned regional governments, both publicly and privately, that Tehran would widen its response across the Middle East if US attacks resume.
Iran has separately warned Arab officials that Saudi oil facilities could be targeted in a renewed conflict, according to people cited by the Journal. Mohsen Rezaei, Iran’s top national security official, said publicly on Sunday that Tehran could also target the United Arab Emirates, as well as regional data centers and internet cables.
US forces and warships threatened
The Iranian government has also told mediators that it could target US personnel more aggressively, including by trying to sink American warships in the Middle East and kill their crews, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the warnings.
Iranian missiles came close to US warships during attacks in September, according to the report.
The Journal said Washington is also preparing for the possibility of renewed fighting, with a third aircraft carrier strike group and another Marine expeditionary unit heading toward the Middle East. The Pentagon is considering sending additional air-defense equipment and munitions to regional bases, it added.
President Donald Trump said last week that he would not order an attack on Iran before the November 3 midterm elections, although US officials have said the military is preparing options for further strikes.
Nuclear sites and military facilities reinforced
Iran has meanwhile reinforced defenses around nuclear sites and other sensitive facilities, the Journal reported.
Satellite imagery analyzed by the Institute for Science and International Security showed new passive defenses, including dirt barriers, around the Natanz and Pickaxe Mountain nuclear sites, according to the report.
The Journal also said Iran has used the pause in major direct fighting to rebuild missile and drone production facilities and replenish its arsenal.
Iranian officials have publicly said airports, ports and power plants are being prepared to operate under wartime conditions. State media have also shown pro-government rallies and military-related training, while billboards in Tehran have advertised civilian courses involving shoulder-fired anti-aircraft weapons and sniper rifles.
The report said the preparations reflect Tehran’s expectation that fighting with the United States could resume after the US midterm elections.
