US Orders Diplomats and Families Out of Saudi Arabia as Houthi Strikes Escalate

The United States has ordered all non-emergency government employees and their family members to leave Saudi Arabia, sharply scaling back its diplomatic presence as Houthi missile and drone attacks on the kingdom intensify.
State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott confirmed the ordered departure on Wednesday, saying it applies to missions in Saudi Arabia only. Four US officials told Reuters that family members at other US missions across the Gulf are also expected to be told to leave in the coming days.
The move follows weeks of escalating attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen on civilian targets inside Saudi Arabia, including strikes on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport that killed civilians and forced major airlines to suspend flights. The US embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert on Wednesday warning of possible further attacks.
Washington had only recently returned some diplomatic personnel to the region after pulling many out when Iran launched attacks on US facilities during the US-Israeli war on Iran that began in February. The embassy and a CIA station in Riyadh came under drone attack in early March.
The Houthi campaign has already disrupted global energy trade and rattled Gulf economies — and now it is pushing American diplomats out of the region's largest oil exporter.
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