US President Donald Trump has cut short his weekend stay at Camp David and returned to the White House amid rising tensions in the Middle East.

Trump had been expected to remain at the presidential retreat in Maryland until Sunday but returned to Washington on Saturday without an immediate explanation from his administration.

The change in schedule came after the Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthi movement said the Iran-backed group had fired a ballistic missile towards Riyadh early on Saturday.

A fire was also reported near King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital. Saudi authorities said their air defences intercepted the missile, while the coalition accused the Houthis of targeting civilian areas.

Following the developments, the US State Department and several American embassies issued security alerts warning citizens about the potential for a rapid escalation of the conflict.

The State Department said the security environment in the Middle East remained complex and warned that the conflict could escalate rapidly. It advised Americans outside the region to seriously reconsider travel to and through affected areas.

The White House did not immediately state whether Trump’s early return was directly connected to the latest developments in the Middle East.

Changes to presidential travel schedules are not unusual, and weather conditions had also been forecast to deteriorate around Camp David on Sunday, with rain and thunderstorms expected in the area.

Trump’s return comes as fighting and diplomatic tensions involving the United States, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi movement continue to affect security conditions across the region.