US Orders Diplomats and Families Out of Saudi Arabia as Houthi Attacks Escalate
The US State Department has ordered non-emergency government employees and their family members to leave Saudi Arabia, after a surge of deadly Houthi attacks on civilian airports and oil infrastructure in the kingdom.
The "ordered departure" was announced on Wednesday by State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott, who said on X that the 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."
Deadly strikes on airport and oil field
The order followed a string of deadly attacks this week. Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation said on Thursday that an attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam killed two people — a Saudi citizen and an Indian national — and injured eight others. The Houthis said they targeted the airport, the Saudi defence ministry and an Aramco facility.
In a separate incident, Saudi Arabia's energy ministry said falling debris from an intercepted drone targeting the Shaybah oil field killed two people — a Filipino and a Nepali national — and injured two others, a Pakistani and an Indian national. The Saudi-led coalition reported intercepting six drones on Wednesday.
US officials told Reuters the department also plans to withdraw family members from several other American missions in the region, including the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain — though Pigott stressed the formal departure order covers only Saudi Arabia for now.
Warnings and travel chaos
The State Department issued a fresh security alert warning US citizens of potential attacks on airports and severe travel disruptions. US government personnel in Saudi Arabia now need special authorization from the chief of mission to use any airport in the kingdom.
Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport has been closed since October 10 after a severe attack. On Wednesday, a limited number of Saudi airlines resumed flights with prior permission, but major carriers including Lufthansa and Air France have cancelled flights to Riyadh through mid-November.
Markets and wider escalation
Investors reacted fast. On Thursday, Saudi Arabia's benchmark TASI index fell 1.2%, Dubai's main index dropped 0.8%, Abu Dhabi's index lost 0.5% and Qatar retreated 0.8%, as markets priced in the risk of a broader regional escalation.
The turmoil comes as a third US aircraft carrier and about 10,000 military personnel head to the Middle East, and President Trump has threatened to resume the war with Iran. Saudi-backed forces have expanded operations against Houthi positions, while Saudi air power continues providing military cover.
Image: The Harry S. Truman Building, headquarters of the US Department of State in Washington DC (photo: AgnosticPreachersKid, CC BY-SA , via Wikimedia Commons).
Sources: Al Jazeera, Arab News, Hindustan Times, Reuters, CNN, Haaretz.
