U.S. Issues Regional Security Alerts as Houthi Threats to Americans Escalate

The Trump administration has warned that Houthi attacks pose a growing threat to Americans in the Middle East, prompting the US State Department to issue security alerts across multiple countries in the region, US officials told ABC News reporter Shannon K. Kingston.

The US State Department warns Americans across the Middle East about the potential escalation of Houthi attacks. [Photo: Mohammd Mohamd, Xinhua]

While the department had been warning US citizens in Saudi Arabia about the risk of Houthi attacks for weeks, US diplomatic missions in Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates issued coordinated security alerts.

The alerts warned that hostilities involving the Iran-backed Houthi movement “have the potential to escalate rapidly” beyond areas already affected by the fighting.

The US mission to Yemen and the US virtual embassy for Iran also issued similar messages.

“We are actively warning US citizens about the very real threat the Houthis pose and urging them to heed official guidance. These alerts are part of a proactive effort by the Trump administration to ensure Americans are aware of potential risks,” State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary for Press Edgar Vasquez said in a statement to ABC News.