JEDDAH/ALKHOBAR, 1 February 2003 — The US State Department has issued a travel warning on Saudi Arabia authorizing the dependents of American diplomatic staff in the Kingdom to return to the US if they wish to do so.
It has also recommended US private citizens in the country to look “rigorously” at their own security situations and consider leaving, “especially given reduced flight availability at a time of high demand related to school holidays and the Haj”.
It further cautions US citizens planning to travel to the Kingdom to look at what it refers to as the “increased risks” of doing so in the light of terrorist threats and attacks against US citizens in the region.
The same warnings have been given to US citizens and diplomatic staff in Kuwait. In its statement on Kuwait, the State Department noted that a US government contractor was killed in an ambush on a car near Camp Doha on Jan. 21, the third attack on a US citizen in the country in the last four months.
Prior to the outbreak of 1991 Gulf War, Washington began reducing the number of its embassy personnel and family members in the Middle East because of the possibility of hostilities and the increased chance of attacks against US citizens.
However, a Jeddah-based US diplomat denied reports by a number of news wire services — including Reuters and AFP —which yesterday stated that the State Department had told US private citizens to leave the Kingdom.
The travel warning was issued on Thursday because of concerns that those who wish to leave may not find seats on flights during and after Haj if they decided to leave then, the diplomat explained. The same is true regarding the advice for diplomats’ dependents. “It is voluntary,” the diplomat told Arab News yesterday. “They do not have to go, but if they do want to they should know that there may be problems finding a seat at a later date.”
The British, Belgian and a number of other European embassies in the Kingdom have advised their citizens during the last week that, in light of the current international situation, they should ensure that their dependants have exit/re-entry visas in their passports.
Britons with non-British dependents have also been told to ensure they have a valid visa to enter the UK.
“We’re not yet telling Britons working here to get an exit and re-entry visa,” another Jeddah-based British diplomat told Arab News yesterday. “That would send the wrong message at the moment,” he added.
“It’s business as usual at all the Western embassies as far as normal day-to-day activities go,” a third, senior Riyadh-based British diplomat said.
Next week, as many as 2.5 million Haj pilgrims will congregate in the two Holy cities of Makkah and Madinah. The flow of people at the moment is very much into the Kingdom. Despite the talk of war in the region, there is no discernible tension here.
As companies and travel agents closed for the weekend, neither were there signs of an exodus at airports. It is expected that Americans who had plans to go on vacation for Haj and the school holidays, scheduled to begin on Feb. 6, will continue with the arrangements they already have in place. Americans leaving Saudi Arabia will depart on flights operated by commercial carriers. Americans who would like to hear a voice recording of the most recent US security information concerning Saudi Arabia should telephone the US Embassy in Riyadh on (1) 488-3800, and then press 7.
