American personnel at the US diplomatic mission in Saudi Arabia have been ordered to leave the country, The New York Times reports, citing current and former officials.
The reported order from the US State Department would be a first during the ongoing Iran war.
It comes more than a week after US-Israeli strikes on the Iranian regime began, and hours after CENTCOM said an American soldier injured in an Iranian attack on Saudi Arabia on March 1 had succumbed to their wounds. Iran has fired at targets across the Gulf during the war.
On Tuesday, the Saudi Defense Ministry said the US embassy in Riyadh was attacked by two drones, which sparked a small fire. The US closed the embassy following the attack. Americans in multiple Saudi cities were given orders to shelter in place, according to the Times, which said Saudi Arabia reported shooting down another drone aimed at the district housing the US embassy today.
US diplomats in Saudi Arabia had requested the order to leave, according to the report. Nonessential workers and their families at other US embassies, including in Israel, have been told they may leave the country if they wish.
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