RIYADH: A British expatriate has welcomed the UK government’s support for Saudi Arabia amid the attacks from the Iran-backed Houthi militia. Britain is deploying Royal Air Force fighter jets to Saudi Arabia and extending air-to-air refueling support as the Kingdom faces continued missile and drone threats. For Somi Arian, host of Argaam’s OnPoint podcast, the announcement carries both personal and diplomatic significance. “As a British citizen who has made Saudi Arabia my second home, I feel pro
RIYADH: Saudi aid agency KSrelief has facilitated the voluntary repatriation of 140 Somali refugees from Yemen in cooperation with the UN Refugee Agency, reported the Saudi Press Agency. The refugees left from Aden International Airport on Wednesday as part of a humanitarian project to protect and assist refugees and communities affected by displacement. KSrelief also facilitated the return of 154 Somali refugees from Yemen via the same route in August. The repatriations are occurring amid Yemen
Oil prices jumped to a five-month high on Thursday after attacks in Saudi Arabia and hits to tankers in the strait of Hormuz threatened further disruptions to the world’s crude supply.
Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, rose by 3% to hit $112 a barrel for first time since 18 May.
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s maritime and logistics sector has absorbed nine months of regional conflict without interruption to trade, and Red Sea ports are handling record cargo volumes, the group CEO of shipping, logistics and freight company ABSA Al Barrak Group said on Wednesday. Speaking to Arab News on the opening day of the Saudi Maritime and Logistics Congress in Jeddah, Akshay Anand said the geography of the Kingdom provided options few countries in a comparable position would have. “From a
RIYADH: The Aster School has become the 11th establishment to join the Royal Commission for Riyadh City’s International Schools Attraction Program, which aims to expand educational options in the capital. According to the RCRC’s website, the International Schools Attraction Program is an initiative that creates a diverse educational ecosystem in Riyadh. The program is aimed at providing residents with “high-quality education tailored to meet both current and future needs.” The school caters to c
A coaster dares riders to be daring, with steep drops, high speeds and improbably tight curves. But safety has become a concern again after a man was thrown from his seat and died in Georgia.
Saudi Arabia is in talks with foreign governments to give state-owned Aramco access to their strategic oil storage, as the kingdom seeks to make its supplies to customers more resilient during disruptions, Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser said.
The fact that Trump made a comment that Israel has been “very helpful” to Saudi Arabia reveals a strategic dilemma facing Mohammed bin Salman: either to align himself with Israel and thereby offend the Arab and Muslim worlds, or to embrace regional collective security and accept the prospect of a Middle East in which Washington […]
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt’s military support for Saudi Arabia would be limited to defending the kingdom’s territory and borders and would not include an attack on Yemen, the presidency said on Wednesday, as the Iran-allied Houthis intensify attacks on the kingdom.
Sisi’s comments came as Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and intelligence chief Hassan Rashad met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi state news agency SPA said. Abdelatty delivered a written message from Sisi to King Salman, and the two sides discussed bilateral ties and regional developments, SPA said.
The letter concerned strengthening bilateral ties and affirmed Egypt’s full solidarity with and support for Saudi Arabia, Egypt’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Any Egyptian military backing for Saudi Arabia could mark a significant escalation in the broader Middle East conflict, which has threatened global energy supplies and pushed oil prices higher since the US and Israel attacked Iran in February.
Egypt would also defend the territory of any other Arab country if asked, Sisi said, but its military effort would not extend beyond Egyptian territory or that of an Arab state whose security and stability Cairo was seeking to protect.
On Monday, Egypt’s parliament delayed until October 26 a vote on authorizing the armed forces to support Saudi Arabia if requested, lawmakers said.
Fighting between the Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognised government and the Houthis, who control the capital Sanaa and much of the north, has escalated in recent weeks, opening another front in the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Egypt and Saudi Arabia are close strategic and economic partners. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, provided Egypt with billions of dollars in aid, central bank deposits and investments after the 2013 military overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi. Sisi became president a year later.
Egypt, a regional military power, previously joined the Saudi-led coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 in support of the government against the Houthis, though it played a limited combat role in the civil war.
The US State Department has ordered some diplomats and family members to depart from its missions in Saudi Arabia and plans to withdraw family members from a number of other US missions in the region, US officials told Reuters.
The order came as attacks in Saudi Arabia killed at least one person and injured eight others at a civilian airport in Dammam and two people were killed in a drone attack on an oil field.
State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a post on X that the department ordered the departure of “non-emergency US government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only” amid attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen on civilian targets in the country.
Washington had returned some diplomatic personnel to the region in recent months after many were pulled out when Tehran launched attacks on US facilities after the US-Israeli war on Iran began in late February.
“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,” Pigott said.
Four US officials told Reuters that US missions in other Gulf states would also be ordering family members to leave. Pigott did not address changes to other missions outside Saudi Arabia.
The latest withdrawals follow an escalation of the fighting in Yemen, opening another front in the regional conflict triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran. The wider conflict has snarled global energy trade and hurt Gulf economies.
After the departure order, Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority reported an attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam that killed one person and injured eight others. Earlier in the day, two people were killed after Saudi air defences intercepted a drone that was attempting to hit a facility at Saudi Aramco’s Shaybah oilfield, the energy ministry said.
The US embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert on Wednesday about possible further attacks by the Houthis on Saudi Arabia, after recent deadly strikes including on Riyadh’s airport.
The embassy and a CIA station hosted there came under attack by drones in early March, as Iran began launching attacks across the region.
King Fahd International Airport in Dammam has resumed normal operations following an attack on Wednesday that resulted in the deaths of a Saudi citizen and an Indian resident, as well as injuries to eight others. Additionally, a drone attack targeting the Shaybah oil field caused two fatalities and further injuries, but did not disrupt operations at the facility.
The United States and Israel have developed detailed plans for renewed military strikes against Iran following the November 3 midterm elections, as American forces build up across the Middle East and the Pentagon quietly repositions troops amid fears of Iranian retaliation, according to reports Wednesday.
In Saudi Arabia's Jazan region, the ancient oral tradition of "Tarwi’at Al-Ra’i" preserves critical pastoral knowledge, utilizing distinct herder's calls to communicate with livestock across its diverse landscapes. With over 7.8 million animals and 23,405 herders, this practice is integral to local livelihoods and food security, embodying the deep connection between herders, their animals, and the land.
Americans traveling in and through the Middle East have a new wrinkle to sort out.
The U.S. State Department has pushed back against circulating reports that it directed nonessential government personnel and their dependents to leave the entire Gulf region, clarifying that the departure order applies only to Saudi Arabia.
State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott dismissed the broader regional claims, calling them "inaccurate" after the department released a formal statement confirming the targeted drawdown within the kingdom.
"The U.S. Department of State issued an ordered departure for non-emergency U.S. government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia," the department said.
In the statement shared with Fox News Digital, the spokesperson noted that "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."
Officials warned the security environment remains highly volatile, adding the conflict "has the potential to escalate rapidly, including beyond that immediate area."
The department emphasized that the safety and security of its staff and its households remain its highest priority.
The United States "will continue to take all necessary steps to protect and support them as they return to the U.S.," the spokesperson said.
In late September, the State Department renewed its warning to Americans traveling in and through the Middle East amid escalating regional tensions.
The warning came as Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched a ballistic missile toward Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which Saudi Arabia said its air defenses intercepted.
Residents reported hearing an explosion and later seeing a plume of smoke near King Khalid International Airport, according to The Associated Press.
No casualties or damage from the attack were reported at the time.
In an X post in September, the State Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs warned that the security environment in the Middle East "remains complex with the potential for unforeseen escalation."
The agency added, "Americans currently in the Middle East should exercise heightened vigilance and be aware of potential flight cancellations, airspace closures and travel disruptions."
Officials specifically cited hostilities between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthis in their warning.
"Iranian-supported Houthis have engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including civilian airports," the post said.
"This military conflict has the potential to escalate rapidly. Americans outside the Middle East should seriously reconsider travel to and through the region."
The agency also advised those traveling to or from the region to monitor airport and airline operations, warning that U.S. diplomatic facilities have been targeted, including outside the Middle East.
In June, U.S. officials similarly urged Americans across the Middle East to remain vigilant as tensions mounted across the region.
At the time, officials warned that airspace closures, demonstrations and threats to locations associated with the United States could disrupt travel with little notice.
The State Department also maintained its "Level 3: Reconsider Travel" advisory for Oman in an Aug. 30 update, warning of risks from armed conflict and terrorism, including the threat of drone and missile attacks from Iran.
JAZAN: Across the valleys, jagged peaks, and coastal plains of Saudi Arabia’s southwestern Jazan Region, an ancient oral tradition known locally as “tarwi’at al-ra’i” continues to echo, preserving centuries of pastoral knowledge and seasonal land stewardship. The rhythmic herder’s call remains an essential working tool in a region home to more than 7.8 million head of livestock, serving as both a navigational compass and a shared language between herders and their animals. According to data rele
Reports emerge of similar withdrawals in UAE, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain amid concerns about a return to conflict with Iran after US midterm elections
The US state department has ordered some diplomats and the families of US government employees to leave Saudi Arabia, as the gulf kingdom faces a barrage of near-daily attacks, with at least three people killed at an airport and oilfield on Wednesday evening.
Attacks on “civilian airports and other critical infrastructure” by the Iranian-supported Houthis in Yemen were highlighted as the reason for the drawdown. State department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said: “The safety and security of department personnel and their families remain our highest priority.”
The State Department ordered the departure of nonemergency U.S. government employees and their family members from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday as the Iranian-backed Houthis have continued to attack the country. “As the Department has repeatedly emphasized, the hostilities have the potential to escalate rapidly, including beyond that immediate area,” a State Department spokesperson told The…
The State Department ordered the departure of nonemergency U.S. government employees and their family members from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday as the Iranian-backed Houthis have continued to attack the country. “As the Department has repeatedly emphasized, the hostilities have the potential to escalate rapidly, including beyond that immediate area,” a State Department spokesperson told The…
The Trump administration has ordered non-emergency U.S. government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as deadly Houthi attacks intensify across the kingdom, raising the stakes as President Donald Trump weighs direct military action against the Iran-backed group.
State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott confirmed Wednesday that the mandatory departure order applies only to Saudi Arabia, pushing back on reports that Washington was preparing a broader evacuation of diplomatic personnel across the Gulf.
"The U.S. Department of State issued an ordered departure for non-emergency U.S. government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only," Pigott said.
The order comes amid a surge in Houthi missile and drone attacks that has left civilians dead, disrupted air travel and sent Saudi Arabia scrambling for additional missile defenses.
"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," Pigott added.
President Donald Trump is weighing whether to launch direct U.S. military strikes against the Houthis, whose expanding missile and drone campaign has increasingly threatened Saudi cities, airports and energy infrastructure.
Houthi strikes and attempted strikes on Saudi Arabia more than doubled in a single week this month, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, with airports in Riyadh, Jizan, Najran, Dammam and Abha targeted since Oct. 5.
The deadliest barrage struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, killing at least 13 people and wounding more than 300.
The escalating attacks have prompted Saudi Arabia to seek additional military support from its allies. Britain announced Tuesday that it would deploy Typhoon fighter jets to help defend Saudi cities and critical infrastructure, while Egypt is assisting the kingdom and Israel has offered to help.
Riyadh has also asked Washington for additional missile interceptors, though U.S. officials have warned that global demand is straining available supplies.
"I also talked to Saudi Arabia today; they'd like interceptors. Israel would like interceptors. We would like interceptors. Every country in the world would like interceptors," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday.
Rubio described the weapons as "probably the most in-demand product right now in the defense field," acknowledging that the United States must balance requests from allies against its own military requirements.
The growing threat has exposed the difficulty of defending Saudi Arabia's vast territory against relatively inexpensive missiles and drones, even with some of the world's most sophisticated air defenses.
"Saudi Arabia is a huge geography to protect, and this speaks to a larger threat we're facing globally: a relatively small nonstate actor can pose a serious challenge to even a sophisticated and extremely expensive military," Farea Al-Muslimi, a research fellow at Chatham House, told Fox News Digital in an interview published Wednesday.
"The Houthis can impose enormous costs without having to spend very much themselves," he said.
Trump has left open the possibility of direct military intervention against the Houthis, telling reporters earlier this month that the U.S. could join Saudi strikes against the group.
"We may. We're gonna look at it," Trump said. "We'll make a decision. We move very quickly."
The U.S. conducted a roughly two-month bombing campaign against Houthi targets in Yemen in 2025 before Trump halted the operation following an Oman-brokered agreement.
The U.S. continues to provide intelligence and targeting support to Saudi Arabia as Trump weighs whether to launch another round of strikes against the Houthis.
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