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The United States has ordered non-essential embassy staff and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as the kingdom faces sustained attacks linked to Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement.
The US State Department announced the decision on Wednesday, citing a worsening security situation and attacks on civilian airports and other critical infrastructure across Saudi Arabia.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the Houthis had increased hostilities against the kingdom, causing civilian casualties and major travel disruptions. He said protecting US government personnel and their families remained a priority.
A diplomatic source in the Middle East told AFP that some families of US embassy personnel were also being withdrawn from the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain. Pigott, however, said Wednesday’s formal departure order applied only to non-emergency embassy employees and their families in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia has faced near-daily attacks this month as fighting involving the Houthis intensifies. One recent strike on Riyadh’s international airport was described as the kingdom’s deadliest such attack in years.
The Saudi energy ministry said on Wednesday that two people lost their lives and two others were injured after debris fell following the interception of a drone targeting an oil facility. The ministry identified those who died as a Filipino and a Nepali. It did not identify who launched the drone targeting the Shaybah oil field near the border with the UAE.
Earlier, the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said it had intercepted six drones. Separately, aviation officials said one person lost their life and eight others were wounded in an attack on Dammam airport in eastern Saudi Arabia.
Yemen Conflict Returns to Focus
The escalation follows the collapse in June of a four-year truce in Yemen’s civil war, reviving fighting in a conflict that began in 2014. Saudi Arabia has led a coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognised government since 2015.
The latest US embassy evacuation order also comes against the backdrop of wider hostilities involving Iran. Washington previously ordered non-essential personnel to leave parts of the Gulf before the US entered its conflict with Iran in late February, and again in July before President Donald Trump called off another round of strikes.
Late on Wednesday, Iranian state media reported several explosions in Hormozgan province, which overlooks the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s official IRNA news agency said explosions were heard in the Karpan area of Sirik but added that local sources had not established their cause.
Read More : Ship Hit by Projectile Near Strait of Hormuz
The United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran in late February, killing the country’s supreme leader and senior military commanders.
Iran has since sought to restrict passage through the Strait of Hormuz by requiring ships to obtain authorisation before crossing. The waterway is one of the world’s most important energy routes and, during peacetime, handled roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies.
The United States has responded with restrictions targeting Iranian ports and vessels, adding another layer of pressure to an increasingly volatile security situation across the Gulf.
