The United States is preparing to order the departure of diplomatic personnel and their families from embassies across the Gulf, three US officials told Reuters on October 21, 2026 — the clearest signal yet that Washington believes the Houthi conflict with Saudi Arabia is entering a more dangerous phase. The move follows weeks of escalating attacks, including deadly strikes on Saudi airports and energy infrastructure.
Two of the officials said the ordered departures could potentially involve the evacuation of all personnel and their families from the US mission to Saudi Arabia. A diplomatic source cited by AFP said families of embassy personnel were also being withdrawn from the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar, and Bahrain. The US embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert on Wednesday about possible further attacks by the Houthis on Saudi Arabia.
What was ordered
An "ordered departure" is one of the State Department's most serious protective measures — typically reserved for situations where Washington assesses a serious and near-term threat to the safety of its personnel. It is distinct from a full embassy closure: essential staff remain, but non-essential personnel and dependents are told to leave.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott insisted the orders applied only to non-emergency staff and their families in Saudi Arabia. But four US officials told Reuters that missions in other Gulf states would also be ordering family members to leave — suggesting a region-wide reassessment of the threat picture, not just a Riyadh-specific precaution.
Pigott wrote on X: "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."
The attacks driving the decision
The evacuation planning caps a month in which Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia reached an unprecedented scale. On October 3, a large fire erupted at a Saudi Aramco oil refinery south of Riyadh after a strike by the group. A week later, a deadly attack on Riyadh's King Khalid international airport killed 12 people and left more than 300 injured; the airport was targeted again in the following hours.
On Wednesday, October 21, authorities said one person was killed and eight were injured in an attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam. It was not immediately clear who was responsible. Earlier the same day, Saudi Arabia's energy ministry said its air defences had intercepted a drone attempting to strike the Shaybah oilfield, killing two people.
The campaign has already forced Saudi Arabia to extend the suspension of flights at Riyadh airport and to postpone the Future Investment Initiative — the "Davos in the Desert" summit — to 2027, after banks and executives balked at travelling to the kingdom. The Houthis have also attempted to blockade Saudi ports, threatening the kingdom's oil exports.
The wider military picture
The US move comes as Western military support for Saudi Arabia deepens. Britain has deployed RAF Typhoon jets to fly defensive counter-air missions over the kingdom against Houthi drones and missiles. France confirmed a military support program including troops and equipment to protect the Yanbu oil complex. Turkey is preparing a parliamentary mandate to send military personnel under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, and more than 100 US advisers are already operating under a joint forces command.
Iran, the Houthis' principal backer, has added to the tension: Iranian officials said Tehran could target American political assets or infrastructure in the case of a large-scale conflict, according to reports citing state media on Wednesday. The US-Iran war earlier this year and Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz form the backdrop — oil prices gained more than $1 a barrel on Wednesday on supply fears, with Brent crude rising to about $110.40.
A region on edge
The market reaction was immediate. Oil prices gained more than $1 a barrel on October 21 as escalating Middle East tensions fuelled fears of supply disruptions, compounded by falling US crude and product inventories. Brent crude futures rose $1.61 to about $110.40 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate gained $1.45 to roughly $99.27, according to Arab News' market reporting. Every new attack adds a risk premium that consumers worldwide eventually pay at the pump.
Other governments are watching Washington's move closely. Travel advisories for the region have been revised repeatedly through October, with European countries — Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway among them — updating guidance for their citizens. Countries from Canada to Australia have refreshed the security sections of their advisories. If the US assessment of a near-term threat is shared by allies, a cascade of similar departures could follow within days.
The evacuation also intersects with an already crowded diplomatic calendar. France's president was in Riyadh the same day securing diesel supplies; Turkey's parliament is preparing a military deployment mandate; Britain's jets are flying defensive patrols. The Gulf has become the place where the world's crises converge — energy security, great-power competition, and active conflict all occupying the same airspace.
What an evacuation signals
Ordered departures are rare and consequential. They signal that US intelligence assesses the threat as credible, near-term, and beyond what normal security measures can manage. For Saudi Arabia — the world's largest crude oil exporter and the anchor of US Gulf partnerships — an American evacuation order carries weight far beyond diplomacy. It touches the heart of global energy supply chains.
The decision also puts pressure on other Western governments to review their own postures. Britain, France, and others with personnel in the kingdom will face the same threat assessments in the coming days. Travel advisories across Europe have already been revised repeatedly through October as the unrest and conflict have spread.
What happens next
The immediate question is whether the ordered departures remain precautionary or precede a further Houthi escalation — or even direct US-Iran confrontation. The Houthis have shown no sign of pausing their campaign; Saudi-led coalition forces say an air campaign against Houthi targets in Yemen is underway.
Diplomatically, the evacuation complicates every ongoing negotiation in the region, from Ukraine-related diplomacy to energy talks. A region bracing for wider war does not do quiet diplomacy well. For oil markets, the risk premium is now being priced in daily — and any disruption to Gulf export hubs or Hormuz shipping lanes would transmit instantly to fuel prices worldwide, from French petrol stations to Asian refineries. Related reading: the UK deploying RAF Typhoons to defend Saudi Arabia, the deadly Houthi missile attack on Riyadh airport, and Saudi Arabia postponing 'Davos in the Desert' to 2027.
The crisis escalated further when an attack on Dammam's King Fahd airport killed one person and injured eight.