Middle East War
US Embassy in Riyadh Hit by Iranian Drones as War Spreads Across Middle East
Drones hit the US embassy in Riyadh following US-Israeli strikes on Iran. The State Department warns citizens to depart the Middle East due to rising security risks.
![Gaza has been under heavy Israeli bombardment for weeks [File: Ohad Zwigenberg/AP]](https://www.africansangle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Gaza-has-been-under-heavy-Israeli-bombardment-for-weeks.jpg)
Iranian drones struck the US embassy in Riyadh on Tuesday amid widening hostilities across the Middle East, prompting the United States to advise its citizens to leave the region immediately.
The strike came days after US-Israeli operations killed Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, triggering an escalating regional war.
AFP correspondents saw smoke damage at the embassy compound, while Saudi security forces sealed off roads and increased checks around the diplomatic quarter.
The United States Department of State had earlier urged “Americans to DEPART NOW” from the region “due to serious safety risks.”
Israel said it was pushing into additional positions in southern Lebanon following missile launches by Hezbollah. Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed forces were authorised to secure “additional strategic positions.”
Iranian strikes also targeted energy infrastructure in Gulf states. Revolutionary Guards General Sardar Jabbari warned:
“We will burn any ship that tries to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.”
President Donald Trump said operations could last weeks and did not rule out deploying ground troops “if they were necessary.”
Saudi authorities intercepted most drones but confirmed two struck the embassy, causing a fire. In the United Arab Emirates, falling debris ignited an oil facility in Fujairah.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington acted pre-emptively after learning of Israel’s planned strike, claiming an “imminent threat.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi dismissed that claim, stating:
“There was never any so-called Iranian ‘threat’.”
He wrote on X:
“Mr. Rubio admitted what we all knew: US has entered a war of choice on behalf of Israel’.”
Six US personnel have been killed so far, while the Human Rights Activists News Agency reported 101 casualties inside Iran, including “85 civilian deaths and 11 military personnel killed.”
In Tehran, residents were seen leaving the city as airstrikes continued.
“Every time we hear the noises, we get scared for just a second,” a 45-year-old lawyer said, “but we experience some joy and excitement every time we hear a hit.”
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