In Riyadh, the office workers of the Kingdom Centre, the 99-storey tower that anchors the skyline, have been told to stay home until further notice. “Kindly refrain from attending the offices during this period,” building management wrote to tenants, in an email seen by Agence France-Presse. The order followed a security alert and two drone interceptions over the capital. The mall at the foot of the tower is still open.
It is a small picture of a larger retreat. Axios reported on Friday that Iran has “substantially increased” efforts to target US diplomats and officials in the Middle East and beyond, and that some alleged assassination plots have reached “advanced stages”. Axios cited an intelligence memo dated October 23 and addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The memo names no targets and gives no details of the plots. It says the intelligence was shared with senior State Department officials.
Embassies thin out
According to Axios, that intelligence was among the reasons the State Department cut staffing at several embassies in the region. A US official said personnel were being reduced in the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Qatar and Jordan because of threats from Iran-backed Houthis and the alleged Iranian plots. Earlier this week, the department ordered family members and nonessential staff out of the US Embassy in Riyadh and out of the consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran.
The Houthis have been hitting Saudi airports and energy sites almost daily for weeks. On Sunday, civil defense in Najran said a Houthi projectile hit a residential area and injured six people, damaging three homes and three vehicles. The same day, Riyadh residents got a phone alert warning of a “hostile aerial threat”, and the Saudi-led coalition said it had destroyed two ballistic missiles fired toward Khamis Mushait and a drone aimed at Riyadh.
Forces arrive as people leave
While diplomats pull back, force is arriving. The US is sending a third aircraft carrier. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently visited Israel to see Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A person briefed on US and Israeli war planning told NPR the two countries are drawing up plans for a possible attack on Iran after the midterm elections. The New York Times reported a larger force, including thousands of Marines, expected to be fully in place by early November. NPR’s Greg Myre said Trump will likely consider military action after November 3, to avoid an oil price spike before the vote.
Trump told a campaign rally in Florida, “We may do another little Epic Fury, or they’ll agree.” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran is ready for both diplomacy and war. Iran’s new defense minister, Mehrdad Akhlaghi, warned of “enormous damage” to the US and its allies in the region if Washington resumes attacks. The war began on February 28, when the US and Israel struck targets across Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the pressure campaign has gutted Iran’s oil exports in under two months, leaving its shadow tanker fleet depleted and its offshore reserves exhausted.
Hormuz
The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency counts at least 10 vessels attacked in or near the Strait of Hormuz since last Sunday, a weekly high since the war began. There have been 23 attacks since the start of the month, almost double the average. On Sunday a tug off the UAE coast reported being struck by two unknown projectiles. It kept going, with one minor casualty.
Araghchi told the semi-official Tasnim agency that Tehran’s conditions are unchanged. Under Iran’s seven-day proposal from September, the strait would reopen on the sixth day and talks would start on the seventh, if the US lifts its blockade of Iranian ports and sanctions on Iranian oil. Tehran is still reviewing US comments on the plan.
Sources
- Iran says Strait of Hormuz reopening, seven-day ceasefire conditions still on the table
- Military reinforcements move to Mideast. And, millions of Americans vote early
- US Iran War Live Updates: Iran president Pezeshkian to meet Russian counterpart Putin in Moscow next week – The Times of India
Photo: OlafJanssen (CC BY-SA 4.0)
