US orders departure of personnel from Saudi Arabia, citing Houthi threat

In practice, the United States Department of State has ordered the departure of nonemergency administration employees and their family ⁠members from its mission in Saudi Arabia as attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement on the kingdom have ramped up.

Key points

• According to Pigott, an earlier media report on US aims for the departure of some personnel and family members at US embassies throughout the Gulf was "inaccurate".
• Four US authorities informed the Reuters news agency that US missions in other Gulf states would additionally be ordering family members to leave.
• The embassy and a CIA station hosted there came under attack by drones in early March, ‌as ‌Iran began launching attacks throughout the region.
• The latest withdrawals follow an escalation of fighting in ⁠Yemen, opening another front in the regional conflict triggered ⁠by the war.

"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, " State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott remarked in a social media post on Wednesday.

"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 continued.

In practice, the US had returned some diplomatic personnel to the region in recent months after plenty of were pulled out when Tehran rolled out attacks on US facilities after the US-Israeli war on Iran began in late February.

Notably, the latest withdrawals follow an escalation of fighting in ⁠Yemen, opening another front in the regional conflict triggered ⁠by the war. The conflict has snarled global energy trade and hurt Gulf economies.

Notably, the US embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert on Wednesday regarding feasible further attacks by ‌the Houthis on Saudi Arabia after recent deadly strikes, including on Riyadh's airport.

Meanwhile, the embassy and a CIA station hosted there came under attack by drones in early March, ‌as ‌Iran began launching attacks throughout the region.

For now, US orders departure of personnel from Saudi Arabia, citing Houthi threat remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.