US orders departure of embassy staff, families from Saudi Arabia

The State Department ordered the departure of nonemergency U.S. government employees and their family members from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday as the Iranian-backed Houthis have continued to attack the country.

“As the Department has repeatedly emphasized, the hostilities have the potential to escalate rapidly, including beyond that immediate area,” a State Department spokesperson told The Hill.

“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 as they return to the U.S.,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

The new order comes as the Houthis are engaged in a war against the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and have been attacking infrastructure inside Saudi Arabia, including civilian airports and other critical sites that have led to civilian casualties.

Saudi Arabia’s air defense intercepted a drone targeting Aramco’s Shaybah oilfield on Wednesday, but two people were killed and another two were injured from the falling debris, the nation’s energy ministry said.

Reuters first reported on Wednesday that the U.S. government is preparing to issue an ordered departure of some personnel and family members from U.S. embassies across the Gulf. State Department spokesperson Tommy Piggot said the report is “inaccurate.”

The Agence France-Presse later reported that the U.S. ordered families of embassy staff in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain to leave, citing a diplomatic source.

“I don’t know that they are. You are telling me something — I wouldn’t know that,” President Trump said Wednesday when asked about the reports.

The U.S. embassy in Saudi Arabia put out a security alert on Wednesday about the potential for further Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia.

“U.S. citizens are reminded to follow the guidance of national alerts released by Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defense via cellular broadcast,” the embassy said. “U.S. government employees working in Saudi Arabia require special authorization from Chief of Mission to use any airport in Saudi Arabia following recent missile and UAV attacks on airports in the Kingdom.”