Schools in Riyadh moved back to remote learning on Tuesday, November 10, two days after pupils returned to classrooms, as Houthi missile and drone attacks on the Saudi capital continued. Parents were told lessons would move online with no date given for a return.
The switch came as Yemen's Houthis stepped up missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia. Saudi air defences intercepted a ballistic missile and a cruise missile over Riyadh on November 10, according to the Saudi Press Agency via Gulf News. The message to parents did not give the attacks as the reason for the move, describing it as a precautionary measure, and lessons are running on the Madrasati platform and other approved platforms.
This is the third period of enforced remote schooling in Riyadh since October. Schools first went online on October 11, the day after a missile strike on King Khalid International Airport that Saudi aviation authorities said killed 12 people and injured 309. Pupils returned to classrooms on November 8, and Riyadh was attacked again that morning, with an attack damaging an Aramco building in the city's financial district. Within two days, lessons were online again.
Heavy rain also forced some schools online on November 10: schools in Qassim and in 12 governorates of Riyadh Region, among them Dawadmi, Zulfi, Majmaah and Shaqra, taught online that day after the National Center for Meteorology warned of heavy rain.
The Houthi escalation began in July 2026. Coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said the Saudi-led coalition had destroyed three Houthi sites that built missile parts and rocket fuel.