look news india
Geopolitical tensions in West Asia (Middle East) have reached a peak after Iran-backed Yemen’s Houthi rebels intensified missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea region. In view of the seriousness of the situation, the United States State Department has issued an emergency security advisory for its citizens and diplomats living in the entire Gulf region, including Saudi Arabia. In this advisory, US citizens have been given strict instructions to be cautious in public places, keep their presence completely low-profile and immediately avoid non-essential trips to the region.
This strict advisory has been issued at a time when Houthi rebels fired ballistic missiles and explosive drones targeting Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh, Aramco oil depot in Yanbu and civilian targets. Although the Saudi air defense system intercepted and destroyed the missiles heading towards Riyadh in the air, the falling debris and continuous attacks have given rise to the fear of a major war.
The US State Department has warned that this military conflict could rapidly escalate. The scope of this tension is not limited to Saudi Arabia only, but Iran and its supported armed groups can also directly target American establishments, embassies, business centers and American citizens inside and outside the region.
The advisory issued by Washington covers the entire region including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Israel and Yemen:
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Citizens ordered to remain low-profile: America has asked its citizens to stay away from crowded places, hotels associated with Western countries, clubs and public demonstrations. Keep your identity and activities limited to avoid any possible targeted attacks.
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Level-3 advisory for Saudi Arabia: The US government has maintained the ‘Level-3: Reconsider Travel’ warning for Saudi Arabia. At the same time, a complete ban has been imposed on the movement of American government employees in sensitive provinces and within a radius of 20 miles from the Yemen border.
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Level-4 for Yemen (Do Not Travel): Due to the ongoing civil war, kidnapping and threat of terrorism in Yemen, American citizens have been given strict instructions not to travel there at all.
The State Department has also alerted that due to increased military tensions, there could be sudden closure of airspace and commercial flights could be canceled or diverted.
In view of the security threats near civil airports, passengers have been advised to keep a constant eye on the security bulletins of their airlines and local embassies. Also, prepare your evacuation plan in advance to deal with any emergency. These latest attacks by Houthi rebels have once again put the trade sea routes of the Red Sea as well as the energy security of the entire Gulf region at great risk.