Saudi Arabia asks skyscraper employees to work from home amid Houthi threats

Amid consistent attacks from Yemen's Houthi rebels, the Kingdom Center skyscraper in Saudi Arabia capital Riyadh told people employed there to work from home. The 99-storey Kingdom Center, one of Saudi Arabia's tallest buildings made working from home "mandatory" with no reason given. The new order is effective immediately and will be in power until further notice, the building's management told tenants, AFP reported.

The move came after two drones were intercepted in the Riyadh area, a third over the Eastern Province and two ballistic missiles in southern Saudi Arabia overnight.

The building house important offices like the International Monetary Fund, wealth management company Merril Lynch and consulting giant McKinsey & Company, among others.

However, the shopping centre at the ground floor of the building will remain open for now.

"Please be advised that remote working arrangements are mandatory for all office employees at Kingdom Centre, effective immediately and until further notice," building management said in an email obtained by AFP.

Though, there was no specific reason given for the decision, experts says it is keeping in view the repeated attacks from Yemen's Houthi rebels.

King Khalid International Airport attack

The heightened security concerns also comes after the deadly Oct 10 attack on King Khalid International Airport that killed 13 people and wounded more than 300 others.

The dead include four Saudi citizens, two Bangladeshis, and one each from the US, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Sudan and the Palestinian territories, besides the Indian, who hailed from Hyderabad and was travelling with his family for the Umrah pilgrimage.

The Houthis say they are targeting Saudi Arabia for supporting government forces in Yemen's civil war, as well as an air strike on the airport in Sanaa.