Germany’s Federal Foreign Office (AA) refreshed its travel and security advice for Saudi Arabia on 25 September, maintaining a partial warning but adding new language on the risk of drone and missile attacks linked to the conflict in neighbouring Yemen. The notice highlights the Eastern Province and areas near the Yemeni border as particularly sensitive. While business hubs such as Riyadh, Jeddah and the NEOM construction zone remain classified as “exercise increased caution,” the AA urges travellers to register in its ELEFAND crisis-tracker and to keep hotel shelter locations in mind. Short-notice flight diversions are possible if Riyadh Airport activates its missile-defence closure protocol, last triggered in June 2026. The update also clarifies entry-health requirements: as of 1 October, proof of polio vaccination is mandatory for travellers who have spent more than four weeks in certain African countries—a detail that could catch multi-country business itineraries off guard. German corporations with project staff in the Kingdom should review duty-of-care obligations, ensure satellite-phone redundancy outside 4G coverage and verify that evacuation insurance covers *armed conflict* scenarios, not just political unrest. Failure to comply could expose firms to liability under Germany’s new Supply-Chain Due-Diligence Act, which includes worker safety abroad. The AA’s next scheduled review is in two weeks, but officials caution that “the security situation can change at any time” and that alerts will be pushed through the Sicher Reisen mobile app.
Source: Auswärtiges Amt
