The United States is reducing staffing at its embassies in Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates after its intelligence chief warned in a memo that Iran had substantially increased efforts to target US personnel, the Associated Press reported. The four embassies remain open but are operating with restrictions, and staff there have not been ordered to leave.
Source: Associated Press via WFB News, Oct 24, 2026
In the one-page unclassified memo dated October 23, Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton told Secretary of State Marco Rubio that US intelligence had received information that Iran had substantially increased efforts to target US personnel, and that, in Clayton's words, the lethal plotting efforts by the Iranians against US citizens have reached advanced stages in both the Middle East and certain other countries. The memo was first reported by Axios; the Associated Press obtained it afterwards, and three US officials confirmed its authenticity to AP. This is a US intelligence allegation — the memo did not identify specific targets or countries outside the Middle East, did not describe the alleged plots, and did not say whether an attack was imminent.
Source: Associated Press via WFB News, Oct 24, 2026
The Hindu, reporting the same warning on October 24, said Clayton offered to downgrade the intelligence so it could be shared more widely with State Department personnel who might be at risk. CBS News also obtained the memo, according to reports summarising its contents, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe was copied on it.
Source: The Hindu, Oct 24, 2026
The drawdown follows a separate order earlier this week for non-essential US government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia — the embassy in Riyadh and the consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran. US officials told AP the staffing changes were connected both to the alleged Iranian threats and to threats from Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement. When it announced the reductions, the State Department highlighted the growing danger from the Houthis and made no direct reference to Iran, AP reported.
Source: Associated Press via WFB News, Oct 24, 2026
The Hindu reported that Saudi Arabia has come under near-daily Houthi attacks this month, including a strike on Riyadh's international airport that it described as the kingdom's deadliest in years — the Houthis' claim and the toll are reported here as The Hindu stated them.
Source: The Hindu, Oct 24, 2026
US officials have denied that the embassy reductions are connected to possible new strikes by the United States and Israel on Iran, according to the reports. The moves matter well beyond diplomats: Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar host lakhs of Indian and Punjabi workers, and any wider regional escalation affects their safety, flights and remittances home.
Source: Associated Press via WFB News, Oct 24, 2026