Several governments have issued a Saudi Arabia travel advisory after Yemen's Houthi fighters carried out repeated strikes on the kingdom's airports. According to Express, the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea are among the countries that have told citizens to avoid travel to Saudi Arabia or to review plans already made. The notices followed multiple attacks on Saudi airports in less than a week.
Which countries have warned citizens
Express places the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea in that group. The report does not reproduce each notice, so it is not clear that every capital chose the same wording. What it does say is that citizens were asked to stay away or to look again at their trips.
Australia and New Zealand issued new guidance on Monday. Citing Al Jazeera, Express said those Monday steps made the list of countries warning about travel to Saudi Arabia longer. The paper attributes the continuing strikes to Yemen's Houthi fighters.
What the notices are responding to
The Saudi Arabia travel warning follows attacks on Saudi airports. Express said several strikes had hit those airports in less than a week and described the Houthi attacks as continuing. The account names neither the airports nor a casualty toll, and it quotes no Saudi official.
A travel advisory is a message from a government to its own citizens, usually asking them to postpone or reconsider a journey. Airlines and airport authorities decide separately whether flights still operate. People judging Saudi Arabia travel safety on the basis of this report have the government notices as the main public fact.
What this means for Pakistan
The Express report does not mention a Saudi Arabia travel advisory from Pakistan. The notices it describes were addressed to citizens of the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea. Many Pakistanis still travel to the kingdom for work, Umrah or family visits, and they use the airports the report says have been attacked. The concern for them is the one those notices rest on: Houthi attacks on Saudi airports.
What is not yet clear
Express does not say how long the advice will last, or whether further governments will follow Australia and New Zealand. The Saudi Arabia travel advisory, as the paper describes it, asks people either to avoid Saudi Arabia or to reconsider journeys already arranged. Express presents that choice as the substance of the notices issued after the airport strikes. Anyone with a booking should read the notice from their own government and confirm the flight with the airline.
