US State Department issues warning to Americans in Middle East

• The US State Department is urging Americans in the Middle East to exercise heightened vigilance and prepare for flight cancellations, airspace closures and travel disruptions.
• It says Iranian-supported Houthis have attacked Saudi Arabia, including civilian airports and other infrastructure, causing civilian casualties, and that the conflict could escalate rapidly.
• The department also warns that Iran and groups backing it may target US interests worldwide, including US businesses and institutions.

The US State Department is warning Americans in the Middle East to exercise heightened vigilance, as of an early Friday statement. It cites a volatile security environment in which Iran-backed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, including on civilian airports, could widen quickly.

The guidance tells Americans in the region to expect possible flight cancellations, airspace closures and wider travel disruptions, and urges anyone traveling to or from the region to monitor airport and airline operations. It adds that Iran and groups supportive of Tehran may target US interests overseas, including US businesses and other institutions, at locations associated with the United States anywhere in the world.

Escalation since July

The warning follows weeks of fighting that has pulled Saudi Arabia back into the Yemen conflict. The Houthis have staged a lightning offensive in recent weeks, seizing large areas of Yemen and leaving the Saudi-backed government scrambling. The Associated Press said the fighting marks a return to civil war after four years of relative calm and has opened a new front in the Iran war.

On Sept. 19, Saudi Arabia confirmed the Houthis tried to hit Riyadh with a ballistic missile, the first such attempt on the capital in this round of fighting. It was intercepted, with no casualties or damage reported. The same account said that flights at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport were disrupted, with major delays and cancellations. Hours earlier, a fire had broken out near the airport.

The Houthis said they struck "sensitive" sites in Riyadh and an Aramco facility in Yanbu, according to military spokesman Yahya Saree, who claimed both operations used ballistic and cruise missiles and drones.

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