Gulf-EU summit in Riyadh postponed over Houthi attacks

The Gulf Cooperation Council and the European Union have postponed their second leaders' summit, which was set for October 24 in Riyadh. The GCC announced the decision on Thursday, October 15, citing continued Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and the extended closure of King Khalid International Airport. The summit will now take place on a later date that both sides still have to agree on.saudigazette.com.sa+1

Safety of delegations cited

GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi said the Houthi group's "continued attempts to target" Saudi Arabia and its civilian sites, along with the long flight suspension at Riyadh's main airport, led the bloc to reschedule in order to protect participating delegations. He said both sides remain committed to creating the right conditions for the meeting.qna.org.qa+1

The European Council's statement gave no reason for the delay. It said only that "a new date will be announced in due course" and that the bloc still attaches "great strategic importance" to its ties with the Gulf. This would have been the second EU-GCC summit. The first was held in October 2024.thenationalnews.com+2

The news broke earlier in the day when Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev arrived at an EU leaders' meeting in Brussels. "Unfortunately, as far as I know, this meeting in Riyadh will be postponed, maybe for security reasons," he told reporters. Two sources then confirmed the postponement to Reuters. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters at the time that "you will hear when there is something to announce".store.jpost.com

Airport shut after deadly strikes

Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport has been closed since a Houthi attack that killed 13 people and wounded more than 300. Reuters described it as the deadliest attack in the kingdom in more than a decade. A notice to airmen keeps the airport shut until 2100 GMT on October 17. A strike the next day hit Terminal 4, killing a Pakistani resident and injuring 11 others.reuters.com+1

The attacks have continued. On Tuesday, the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted three missiles and two drones aimed at Riyadh and at Aramco's Saudi Arabian Oil Company headquarters in Dhahran. Saudi Arabia's state news agency said falling debris in Riyadh injured four people.store.jpost.com

Wider disruption in Riyadh

Airlines have scaled back service to the kingdom. Lufthansa Group Deutsche Lufthansa AG cancelled its Riyadh flights through October 16, and Air France-KLM suspended Riyadh service until the end of the month. Reuters reported that the attacks have also put pressure on other October events in the capital, including the kingdom's flagship investment conference and the WPC Energy Congress.reuters.com