Saudi Arabia postpones Davos in the Desert after Houthi strikes close Riyadh airport
Dimon Fink and Solomon listed as speakers while delegates plotted a five-hour drive from Bahrain, monarchy that buys football clubs cannot keep rockets from its runway
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Title: Israeli airstrikes continue across Gaza and other top photos from the Middle East Image ID: 26288648754622 Article: A supporter of Yemen's Houthi rebels carries his rifle during a rally in support of the group in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, Oct. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
breitbart.com
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Saudi Arabia has postponed its flagship Future Investment Initiative conference — the sovereign wealth fund's annual gathering known as "Davos in the Desert" — after Houthi missile and drone attacks shut down civil aviation in the capital. The postponement was announced Monday with no stated reason, but few needed one: King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, hit on October 10 in an attack that killed at least 14 people, announced the same day that all takeoffs and landings now require advance permission and that the airport would be closed until further notice.
The tenth-anniversary edition had been slated to feature JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon, Goldman Sachs' David Solomon and BlackRock's Larry Fink, among others. According to CNBC, some participants had planned to fly into Bahrain and drive five hours to Riyadh to avoid the threat to Saudi airports; organizers had considered letting executives attend remotely before scrapping the event entirely. Registrations and partnerships "remain completely valid," FII said, promising new dates in 2027.
The kingdom had been comparatively insulated while Qatar and the UAE rescheduled events earlier this year under Iranian missile and drone fire. That changed in September, when hostilities with the Houthis flared; the rebels have since warned airlines that flying into Saudi Arabia is not safe, and claimed further strikes on Monday including another hit on King Khalid airport. The Saudi military said it intercepted several drones launched at Riyadh over the weekend. Al Jazeera reported government and private sector workers in the capital were told to work from home.
The conference was launched in 2017 as the showcase of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's plan to diversify the economy beyond petroleum — the same prince who unveiled the NEOM mega-city on that inaugural stage. The sovereign fund has since bought European football clubs and stakes in Western technology. The Houthis have now demonstrated which of the prince's assets is the softest target: the showcase itself needed the airport open, and the airport is closed.