US orders departure of diplomats from Saudi Arabia amid Houthi strikes

The US State Department has ​ordered some diplomats and ‌family members to ​depart from its missions in Saudi Arabia and is planning to move out family members ‌from a number of other US missions in the Gulf, US officials told Reuters.

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a post on X that the ‌department ordered the departure of "non-emergency US government employees and their family ‌members in Saudi Arabia only" amid attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen on civilian targets in the country. Washington had returned some diplomatic personnel to the region in recent months ⁠after ​many were pulled ⁠out when Tehran launched retaliatory attacks on US facilities after the US-Israeli war on Iran began ⁠in late February.

"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. Four US officials told Reuters that US missions in ⁠other Gulf ​states would also be ordering family members to leave. Pigott did not address changes to other missions outside Saudi Arabia.

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