Riyadh: In a significant geopolitical development, the United States has ordered its non-emergency embassy personnel and their family members to leave Saudi Arabia. This sweeping directive, driven by continuous and escalating drone attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, also extends to diplomatic staff in the United States Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Qatar, and Bahrain.
The security situation in the region has deteriorated following the collapse of a UN-brokered four-year ceasefire in July this year. Since then, hostilities between Houthi forces in Yemen and the Saudi-led coalition have intensified, heavily impacting civilian infrastructure.
Confirming the evacuation order on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), US State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott stated, “The US State Department has ordered US government employees engaged in non-emergency work in Saudi Arabia and their families to leave the country.” Pigott highlighted that Houthi rebels are consistently targeting Saudi Arabia, explicitly threatening civilian airports and critical infrastructure. These attacks have disrupted travel and resulted in civilian casualties.
The urgency of the US directive comes closely after a deadly drone incident in the Kingdom. The Saudi Ministry of Defence confirmed that Saudi Air Defence forces intercepted a drone attempting to target the Shaybah oil field processing facility, owned by Saudi Aramco, in the Eastern Province. While the interception was successful and oil field operations remained unaffected, the falling debris struck a contractor’s vehicle outside the facility’s perimeter, igniting a fire.
The Saudi authorities issued a statement confirming that the falling debris tragically killed two individuals—one from the Philippines and one from Nepal. Additionally, a Pakistani national and an Indian citizen sustained injuries in the incident. Expressing condolences to the grieving families, Saudi officials wished a speedy recovery to the injured.
Following the incident, the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia assured prompt action. In an official statement, the embassy noted, “We have received information that an Indian citizen has been injured in the attack on the Shaybah oil field. We are in touch with Saudi authorities and are waiting for further information. We will provide all possible help to the injured Indian citizen.”