The United States has ordered non-essential embassy staff and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as the kingdom faces near-daily attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis, the US State Department said on Wednesday.

The announcement followed a report by a diplomatic source who told AFP that "all American staff and their families have been ordered to depart from the US embassy" in Saudi Arabia.

The source also said families of embassy staff had been ordered to leave the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain, which have faced Iranian attacks during the Middle East war.

US State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott later confirmed the move in a post on X. However, he clarified that it applied to "non-emergency US government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only". He cited Houthi attacks, including strikes on airports, and said, "the safety and security of Department personnel and their families remain our highest priority".

Saudi Arabia has faced repeated Houthi attacks this month, including a strike on Riyadh's international airport described as the kingdom's deadliest in years.

On Wednesday, the Saudi energy ministry said falling debris from the interception of a drone targeting an oil facility killed two people and injured two others.

"The attempted attack resulted in the deaths of two individuals, a Filipino and a Nepali, and injuries to two others," the ministry said.

The ministry did not identify who launched the drone targeting the Shaybah oil field near the UAE border. Earlier on Wednesday, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said it had intercepted six drones.

A four-year truce in Yemen's civil war collapsed in June, reviving a conflict that began in 2014. The Saudi-led coalition has supported Yemen's internationally recognised government since 2015.

The US had previously ordered non-essential staff to leave the Gulf before its war against Iran began and again in July, before President Donald Trump called off a new wave of strikes.

Late on Wednesday, Iranian state media reported explosions in the southern province of Hormozgan, near the Strait of Hormuz, ending a period of relative calm.

"A few minutes ago, the sound of several explosions was heard in the Karpan area of Sirik, in Hormozgan Province," the official IRNA news agency reported.

It added that "local sources have not yet disclosed the nature of these explosions".

The conflict began in late February when the United States and Israel attacked Iran, killing its supreme leader and senior military commanders.

Iran has sought to block the strategic Strait of Hormuz, requiring ships to obtain its authorisation to pass. During peacetime, the waterway carries about a fifth of global oil supplies. The United States has retaliated by imposing a counterblockade on Iranian ports and ships.