Drone Strike Shuts US Embassy in Saudi Arabia as Iran–Israel Conflict Intensifies

New York, March 2026 : The escalating conflict in the Middle East took a sharper turn on Tuesday after an Iranian drone strike hit the United States Embassy in Saudi Arabia, prompting its immediate closure, even as the United States and Israel continued sustained military operations against targets across Iran.

Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry confirmed that two drones struck the US Embassy compound, causing minor structural damage. Officials said there were no casualties reported in the incident. The attack heightened security concerns across the Gulf region and marked a significant expansion of the conflict beyond Iranian territory.

The embassy strike in Saudi Arabia followed another incident a day earlier in which Washington’s diplomatic mission in Kuwait was hit, leading to its closure as a precautionary measure. With threats escalating rapidly, the US government issued advisories urging its citizens to leave 14 countries across the Middle East, stretching from Egypt to Yemen, as the war entered its fourth day.

Meanwhile, Israeli operations deepened both inside and outside Iran. According to a report by Fox News citing a senior Israeli official, Israeli forces carried out a strike on an Iranian Supreme Council meeting that was reportedly convened to select a successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Khamenei was killed on February 28, the first day of the conflict. It remains unclear whether the latest strike resulted in casualties among senior Iranian leadership.

Addressing the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, US Under Secretary of War Elbridge Colby sought to distance Washington from the killing of Khamenei. He stated that the operation was carried out by Israel and emphasised that the United States remains focused on dismantling Iran’s military capabilities rather than targeting its political leadership.

Israel also widened the geographic scope of its campaign. Airstrikes were launched on targets in Beirut linked to Hezbollah, after the group fired rockets into Israeli territory. On the ground, Israeli troops advanced further into southern Lebanon, capturing additional territory amid ongoing clashes.

In a rare move, the Israeli military issued public warnings in Persian via social media, alerting Iranian civilians of imminent strikes in several locations, including parts of Tehran, and urging residents to evacuate targeted areas.

The human cost of the conflict continued to rise sharply. The overall death toll across the region has crossed 1,000. Iran’s Red Crescent reported that nearly 790 people have been killed inside the country. Lebanese authorities confirmed 31 deaths, Israel reported 10 fatalities, while Gulf nations accounted for six deaths. Additionally, six American military personnel have been killed during the hostilities.

As diplomatic missions shut down, evacuation advisories expand, and military operations intensify across multiple fronts, the conflict shows little sign of de-escalation, raising fears of a prolonged and wider regional war.

(The content of this article is sourced from a news agency and has not been edited by the Mavericknews30 team.)