Vehicles drive along a street near the Diplomatic Quarter, following drone strikes that hit the U.S. Embassy compound and were intercepted by Saudi air defences, according to the Defence Ministry, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, March 3, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
The growing war began on Saturday (February 28, 2026) after joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran that Tehran said killed dozens of civilians and the country’s supreme leader.
Also Read:Iran-Israel war updates
“The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh was attacked by two drones, according to initial assessments. The attack resulted in a limited fire and minor material damage to the building,” the statement said.
Two witnesses told AFP they saw fire engines around the Embassy.
‘Avoid Embassy until further notice’: U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia tells Americans
The U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia urged Americans to avoid the diplomatic post for the time being.
The embassy posted on X: “Avoid the Embassy until further notice due to an attack on the facility.” It said all appointments had been cancelled.
Earlier, witnesses said they had seen smoke over the building housing the U.S. mission and heard loud explosions in the diplomatic quarter, home to foreign embassies in the Saudi capital.
A source close to the Saudi army, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue, told AFP that Saudi air defences intercepted four drones targeting Riyadh’s diplomatic quarter in the attack.
In the aftermath, the U.S. Embassy issued shelter in place notifications for Jeddah, Riyadh and Dhahran and limited non-essential travel to any military installations in the region.
Later on Tuesday (March 3, 2026), the Saudi Defence Ministry said it had intercepted more than half a dozen drones near capital Riyadh and the city of Al-Kharj.
“Eight drones were intercepted and destroyed near the cities of Riyadh and Al-Kharj,” said defence ministry spokesman Major General Turki al-Malki on X.
The attacks in Saudi coincided with a wave of missiles and drones launched at Gulf states with the UAE Defence Ministry saying it was dealing with a barrage of ballistic missiles coming from Iran.
In Qatar, the military intercepted two ballistic missiles early Tuesday (March 3, 2026) morning, the country’s defence ministry said in a statement.
Iran’s salvos have hit ports, airports, residential buildings and hotels along with military sites across the wealthy region of oil giants.
On Monday (March 2, 2026) smoke poured out of Kuwait City’s US embassy, an AFP correspondent saw.
Later, a Kuwait-based diplomat and a Western diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP the Embassy had been damaged by several drones, while a second Kuwait-based diplomat said the building had been struck directly.
Trump warns of longer Iran war
President Donald Trump suggested Monday (March 2, 2026) that the United States would retaliate “soon” after its Embassy in the Saudi capital Riyadh was struck by two suspected Iranian drones.
Speaking to the NewsNation network, Mr. Trump said “you’ll find out soon” how the United States would respond, without providing further detail, after the U.S. embassy confirmed a drone attack that caused “a limited fire and minor material damage.”
After the attack, the embassy issued a shelter in place notification for U.S. citizens in Jeddah, Riyadh and Dhahran.
Published – March 03, 2026 08:37 am IST
