The State Department has ordered non-emergency U.S. government staff and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as Houthi attacks increase. The department says the order applies only to Saudi Arabia, while several other embassies have reduced staffing and services under restricted operations without ordering personnel to depart. Recent attacks include a strike on Riyadh’s airport that killed 12 people and injured more than 300, including one American. U.S. officials have also cited attacks on civilian infrastructure and travel disruptions as the reason for the action. No departure deadline, fees, forms or detailed travel arrangements were provided in the account, and the administration’s plans for further assistance to Saudi Arabia remain unclear.
TLDR: The State Department’s mandatory departure applies to designated non-emergency personnel and their families in Saudi Arabia, not other Gulf states. Other embassies have reduced services, while the department has not provided a deadline or detailed evacuation arrangements.
The U.S. State Department has ordered non-emergency government employees and their family members to leave Saudi Arabia as Houthi attacks on the kingdom increase. The order is limited to Saudi Arabia, a department spokesperson said Wednesday, correcting a report that the action might apply to other Gulf states. The move reduces the number of U.S. personnel in the country while security risks are elevated.
The department’s stated rationale is that Iranian-supported Houthi forces have increasingly attacked Saudi Arabia, including civilian airports and critical infrastructure, causing civilian deaths and severe travel disruptions. That is the practical basis for requiring designated staff and their families to depart. The order does not mean that U.S. embassies across the region have all closed or taken the same step.
The department’s spokesperson, Tommy Pigott, said the ordered departure applies to non-emergency U.S. government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only. An ordered departure means designated diplomatic staff and accompanying relatives must leave because of security risks. The statement distinguishes the Saudi action from staffing changes at several other U.S. embassies, which are operating under a less extensive status.
Those other posts have adjusted staffing under “restricted operations,” but have not been placed under ordered departure. The department introduced restricted operations in August amid flare-ups in the war with Iran. That status allows an embassy to reduce staffing and services without fully suspending operations. The distinction matters: reduced services can affect the work an embassy can perform, while the Saudi order requires designated personnel and families to depart.
The evacuation follows warnings issued over the weekend by U.S. embassies in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and other countries. Those warnings urged Americans in the region to exercise caution and prepare for travel disruptions linked to Houthi attacks. They were not described as orders for all Americans to leave. The department’s departure directive instead concerns non-emergency government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia.
The risks cited by U.S. officials are grounded in recent attacks. Houthi forces have launched drones and missiles at Saudi airports and oil facilities. A strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport earlier this month killed 12 people and injured more than 300, including one American among those killed. The attacks have continued: a Saudi-led military coalition said it intercepted multiple Houthi drones on Monday and Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry also said air defenses blocked a drone attack on the Shaybah oil field on Tuesday. The agency reported that falling debris killed two people and injured two others, but did not identify who launched the drone. The separate incident adds to the security concerns surrounding infrastructure and public safety. The department has not stated that the ordered departure applies to other countries where warnings or staffing changes have been reported.
The broader regional setting adds to the concern. The Houthis have sought to expand their control in Yemen and have held a large area, including the capital, Sanaa, for more than a decade. Some Saudi officials blame Iran for Houthi conduct, while Iran denies a role in the escalation. The Houthis’ proximity to the Bab al-Mandab Strait also raises concern beyond Saudi Arabia because a large share of the world’s oil moves through that maritime route. The strait has gained importance amid disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz during the U.S.-Iran war.
Yemeni political adviser Marwan Ali Noman warned that Houthi attacks could continue unless the group is confronted. He said the Yemeni government is seeking international assistance. The United Kingdom has offered support to Saudi Arabia, including defensive air operations. It remains unclear whether the Trump administration plans to assist Saudi Arabia. President Trump has not ruled out strikes on the Houthis, and has also said the United States has communication with the group.
The immediate policy impact is a mandatory departure for designated non-emergency U.S. government staff and accompanying family members in Saudi Arabia, alongside reduced staffing and services at some other embassies under restricted operations. The excerpt gives no departure deadline, travel arrangements, fees, forms or specific enforcement process, so those details remain unspecified. The directly affected group is limited to the designated personnel and relatives covered by the Saudi order; the weekend warnings separately advise Americans in the region to prepare for travel disruption.
The order’s next steps are the departure of designated staff and continued embassy operations under the applicable security status. No further deadline or oversight schedule is specified in the available account. Those details will need to be established through official updates as the department manages the departure and monitors the security situation.
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