The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office updated its Saudi Arabia travel advice on 25 July 2026, hardening the language after Houthi forces resumed strikes on Saudi territory.
The FCDO now advises against all travel within 10km of the Saudi-Yemen border, and against all but essential travel between 10km and 80km from it. Per the advisory, since July 2026 the Houthis have launched air strikes against Saudi territory and against Saudi shipping in the Red Sea.
The advisory warns that airports and ports in Riyadh, Jeddah and Abha could be targeted at short notice. It tells British nationals to prepare for flight cancellations, periodic airspace closures and wider travel disruption.
For operators the shift is practical, not abstract. A movement plan built around Jeddah or Riyadh now carries a live disruption risk that can strand a principal or collapse a schedule with little warning. Airport and port dwell time is exposure. Build contingency for a closed corridor, keep a fallback routing, and confirm the principal's appetite for the trip against the current advisory rather than last month's.
