US orders non-emergency staff and families to leave Saudi Arabia over Houthi attacks

The US State Department ordered the departure of non-emergency US government employees and their family members from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, as attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels on the kingdom continue. The Associated Press, in a report carried by The Seattle Times, said the order covers non-essential staff at the US Embassy in Riyadh and its satellite consulates. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott wrote on X that Iranian-supported Houthis have increasingly engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including attacks on civilian airports and other critical infrastructure resulting in civilian casualties and severe travel disruptions. A State Department spokesperson told The Hill that the department has repeatedly emphasized that the hostilities have the potential to escalate rapidly, including beyond the immediate area. [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]

According to the AP, the embassy had been badly damaged at the start of the Iran war and had operated with a skeleton staff for months, although some diplomats had returned in recent months. A security alert said US government employees in Saudi Arabia need special authorization from the Chief of Mission to use any airport in the kingdom after recent missile and drone attacks. [ 2 , 3 ]

CBS News reported that Pigott's post said the order applied to Saudi Arabia only, pushing back on a report that it could extend to other Gulf states. CBS News said several other embassies adjusted staffing under a "restricted operations" status, which the department introduced in August and which allows reduced staffing and services without fully suspending operations. CNN cited a source as saying a few other US posts in the region are adjusting staffing because of the Houthi threat, and a State Department official told CNN, "This is about the Houthis." [ 3 , 5 ]

The AP said the Houthis have routinely targeted Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport, which had been closed since Oct. 10 after a severe attack. CBS News said an early-October strike there killed 12 people, including one American, and injured more than 300. On Wednesday, aircraft from a limited number of Saudi airlines, including Saudia and FlyNas, operated at the airport, but Lufthansa and Air France have canceled flights to Riyadh through mid-November, the AP said. The AP also said the Houthis acknowledged attacking the airport, claiming without evidence that Saudi Arabia provided military equipment to government forces through it. [ 2 , 5 ]

CNN reported that Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it intercepted at least seven drones, including one targeting the Shaybah oil field in the Eastern Province, in an attack that killed two expatriate workers and injured two others. CBS News said a Saudi-led coalition reported intercepting multiple Houthi drones on Monday and Tuesday. [ 3 , 5 ]