U.S. orders embassy staff to leave Saudi Arabia due to Iran war

The United States said on Sunday (March 8, 2026) that it was ordering embassy staff to leave Saudi Arabia as Iran strikes the kingdom in retaliation for the attacks by Washington and Israel.

The State Department said in a travel advisory it had “ordered non-emergency U.S. Government employees and U.S. Government employee family members to leave Saudi Arabia due to safety risks.”

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The order indicated ongoing fears about strikes by Iran, as President Donald Trump warns he is ready for weeks more of war and Tehran says it is ready to respond.

The United States previously had given permission for non-essential staff to leave but did not require them to do so.

The State Department said it continued to warn Americans to “reconsider travel” to Saudi Arabia, though without cautioning against all trips to the kingdom, which has assiduously courted U.S. businesses and politicians.

Drones hit the U.S. embassy in the Saudi capital Riyadh last week, and drones have also caused damage at the U.S. embassies in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.

On Sunday (March 8), Saudi Arabia said two people were killed and 12 wounded when a projectile landed in Al Kharj province.

Iran has vowed to extract a price after the United States and Israel launched a massive attack on February 28 that killed the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Gulf Arab kingdoms are closely allied with the United States, with Bahrain, and Qatar both providing key bases for U.S. forces.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday (March 7) apologised to neighbouring countries for attacks but later said Iran would be “forced to respond” if the states are used to attack Iran.