State Department orders nonessential staff and families out of Saudi Arabia as Houthi attacks mount

By Staff Reporter

WASHINGTON — The State Department on Wednesday ordered non-emergency U.S. government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia, after months of Houthi missile and drone attacks on Saudi airports and oil facilities.

“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,” department spokesman Tommy Pigott said, according to CBS News. He wrote on X that the order applies to “Saudi Arabia only,” pushing back on a report that it could extend to other Gulf posts.

An ordered departure is mandatory for the staff it covers, unlike an authorized departure, which lets employees choose to leave. CBS reported that several other U.S. embassies in the region have cut staff under a “restricted operations” status the department introduced in August, without going on ordered departure.

What the embassy is telling Americans

A security alert issued by the U.S. Mission in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday said operations at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh “remain suspended,” while the airports in Jeddah and Dammam are open with delays and cancellations. U.S. government employees now need special authorization from the chief of mission to use any airport in the country. The alert lists rail, bus and road alternatives and says all land border crossings, including the King Fahd Causeway to Bahrain, remain open.

The alert also repeats a Saudi Interior Ministry warning that filming or sharing information about missile and drone interceptions or impact sites “exposes you to legal liability,” and says U.S. citizens have been detained for taking such photos. Regular and emergency consular services remain available.

The department’s travel advisory for Saudi Arabia still stood at Level 3, “Reconsider travel,” as of early Thursday, with the last update dated Oct. 12. It says not to travel to the Yemen border region for any reason. Advisories are typically updated to reflect an ordered departure.

The attacks

The Houthis struck Riyadh’s King Khalid airport on Oct. 10, killing 12 people, including one American, and injuring more than 300, CBS reported. On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said debris from a drone intercepted over the Shaybah oil field killed two people, and one person was killed in a strike at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, the BBC reported. The ministry didn’t say who launched the Shaybah drone.

An informal truce between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis held for about four years before unraveling in July, when the group declared a “maritime embargo” against the kingdom and began attacking Saudi airports, oil sites and tankers in the Red Sea, according to the BBC. The Houthis say they are retaliating for what they call a Saudi blockade and an airstrike on Sanaa’s airport. Iran has denied any role in the escalation, CBS reported.

The Red Sea route matters more than usual this year. Saudi Arabia has relied on it for oil exports since the war with Iran, which began Feb. 28, according to the travel advisory, effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, the BBC reported.

What Washington has said

President Trump didn’t rule out strikes on the Houthis after the Riyadh airport attack, telling reporters “We may,” CBS reported. He also said the United States has “communication with the Houthis.” CBS, citing a U.S. official and a senior military official, reported that the U.S. military has been quietly reducing its footprint at some Middle East posts. Britain has offered Saudi Arabia support, including defensive air operations.

The State Department hasn’t said how many employees and family members the order covers or how long it will last. The Associated Press also reported the order on Wednesday.

The Inquisitor asked the State Department, the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon, the offices of Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and ranking member Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and the Washington Institute for Near East Policy about the order and the U.S. response. None had responded by publication time. This story will be updated with any responses.

Photo: The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh. U.S. Embassy in Riyadh / Wikimedia Commons, public domain.