US orders embassy staff to leave Saudi Arabia amid Houthi attacks

The United States has ordered nonemergency government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi militants on the kingdom intensify, including a deadly strike on Riyadh’s airport.

The mandatory departure applies only to Saudi Arabia, State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said Wednesday, disputing a report that similar orders would cover other Gulf states. Four U.S. officials told Reuters, however, that U.S. missions in other Gulf countries would also order family members to leave, according to Al Jazeera. CBS News reported that several other embassies have reduced staffing under a separate “restricted operations” status but have not ordered departures.

“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,” Pigott said in a social media post.

“The safety and security of Department personnel and their families remain our highest priority, and we will continue to take all necessary steps to protect and support them,” he added.

Houthi drones and missiles have struck Saudi airports and oil facilities in recent weeks, CBS News reported. An Oct. 10 attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport killed 12 people, including one American, and injured more than 300. The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh warned Wednesday that further Houthi attacks were possible.

The attacks have continued. A Saudi-led military coalition reported intercepting multiple Houthi drones on Monday and Tuesday. Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said air defenses blocked a drone attack on the Shaybah oil field Tuesday, but falling debris killed two people and injured two others. The ministry did not identify who launched that drone.

U.S. embassies in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and other countries had warned Americans over the weekend to exercise caution and prepare for travel disruptions. The U.S. military has also been quietly reducing its presence at Middle Eastern posts because of threats from the Houthis and Iran, a U.S. official and a senior military official told CBS News.

The Houthis control a large part of Yemen, including the capital, Sanaa, and have sought to expand their territory, CBS News reported. Some Saudi officials blame Iran for the group’s actions; Iran denies a role in the escalation. Fighting in Yemen has added another front to the regional conflict that followed the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, Al Jazeera reported. It said the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh and a CIA station there were attacked by drones in early March, as Iran launched attacks across the region.

Marwan Ali Noman, a political adviser to Yemen’s foreign minister, told CBS News the Houthis could keep attacking unless confronted. “We are fighting on behalf of everyone, because the threat and risk of the Houthis will expand,” he said, adding that Yemen’s government is seeking international assistance.

The United Kingdom has offered Saudi Arabia support, including defensive air operations. Whether Washington will provide similar assistance remains unclear. Asked after the airport attack whether the United States might strike the Houthis, President Donald Trump told reporters: “We may.”