Riyadh gave Iran’s military attaché, assistant attaché, and three embassy staff 24 hours to leave the kingdom on Saturday — a sharp diplomatic rupture triggered by a drone strike on the SAMREF refinery at Yanbu, Saudi Arabia’s only remaining oil export outlet since Iran effectively blocked tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry declared the five officials personae non gratae, citing “repeated Iranian attacks” that it called a “flagrant violation of all relevant international conventions, the principles of good neighbourliness, and respect for state sovereignty,” according to Al Jazeera and the Middle East Monitor.

The timing is pointed. On Thursday, a drone fell on the Aramco-Exxon SAMREF refinery near Yanbu port, disrupting oil loadings on the Red Sea coast, according to Al Jazeera. With Iranian action effectively blocking tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, Yanbu is the only route left for Saudi crude exports. Hitting it was hitting an artery.

A Three-Year Thaw, Frozen

Saudi Arabia and Iran restored diplomatic ties in a Beijing-brokered deal three years ago, a process widely seen as a landmark in Gulf diplomacy. That framework is now in ruins. The Foreign Ministry’s statement explicitly accused Tehran of violating the Beijing Agreement and UN Security Council Resolution 2817, warning of “significant consequences” for current and future relations, according to Al Jazeera. The Middle East Monitor reported the ministry said the attacks would have a “profound” impact on bilateral ties.

Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud had already signalled the shift earlier in the week, saying trust in Iran had been “shattered” and noting that Gulf states possess “very significant capacities and capabilities” they could deploy, according to Al Jazeera.

Saudi Arabia is the second Gulf state to expel Iranian military diplomats since the US-Israeli war on Iran began on February 28. Qatar took similar action on Wednesday after Iranian missiles damaged the Ras Laffan LNG facility. The pattern suggests a coordinated Gulf pivot — away from dialogue, toward deterrence.

Sources