Egypt Weighs Military Aid as Houthi Strikes Empty Riyadh Tower

Egypt is preparing to deploy military support for Saudi Arabia as escalating Houthi rebel attacks force international firms out of Riyadh’s tallest office tower and shut down the capital’s primary airport. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi requested an emergency parliamentary session Sunday to authorize defensive operations, according to Reuters, marking a potential turning point in a conflict that has now paralyzed daily life across the Saudi capital.

The legislative push followed a National Defense Council meeting chaired by el-Sissi. Cairo signaled readiness to defend Saudi territorial integrity and Islamic holy sites. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty discussed de-escalation efforts with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, according to a post on X. Parliament was expected to continue deliberations Monday.

Direct intervention by Egypt, which maintains one of the Arab world’s largest standing armies, would fundamentally alter the military calculus against the Iran-backed Houthis. The group controls Sanaa and much of northern Yemen. Fighting between the rebels and the Saudi-led coalition, which backs Yemen’s internationally recognized government, has intensified alongside the broader U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.

The security deterioration reached Riyadh’s commercial core over the weekend. Management at the 99-story Kingdom Centre ordered all office employees to work remotely until further notice, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported. “Please be advised that remote working arrangements are mandatory for all office employees at Kingdom Centre, effective immediately and until further notice,” building management said in an email obtained by AFP. Workers were instructed not to return to their desks. The retail mall at the base of the tower remained open. Tenants displaced by the mandate include Merrill Lynch, McKinsey & Company and the International Monetary Fund.

Saudi air defenses intercepted two drones over the Riyadh area, a third over the Eastern Province and two ballistic missiles in the south overnight, the Saudi-led coalition said. Authorities had earlier issued a threat alert in the capital, also shared on X.

Civilian infrastructure continues to absorb heavy damage. An Oct. 10 attack on King Khalid International Airport killed 13 people and wounded more than 300 others, Fox News Digital previously reported. A strike the following day killed one person and injured 11. Airport operations remain severely disrupted, while schools in Riyadh have extended remote learning measures.

Violence flared simultaneously along the southern border. Six people were injured when a hostile projectile struck a residential neighborhood in Najran, damaging three homes and three vehicles, Saudi civil defense authorities reported Sunday. Separately, the Saudi military confirmed two deaths in a helicopter crash near the Yemen frontier. Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki, spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition, said an AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter crashed in the Najran region because of a technical malfunction, killing both crew members.