Amid rising tension over a possible attack on Iran, the United States Embassy in Israel has asked its non-emergency workers and families of workers to leave Israel.
An email from the Ambassador, Mike Huckabee, to the mission on Friday, told workers that they are allowed to leave should they wish to do so, The New York Times reports. The US Embassy in Jerusalem also confirmed the situation in a Friday post on X.
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Mr Huckabee said those wishing to leave “should do so TODAY.”
He also told the workers to find a flight out of Ben-Gurion Airport to any destination that could be a passage.
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“The embassy’s move will likely result in high demand for airline seats today. Focus on getting a seat to any place from which you can then continue travelling to DC, but the first priority will be getting expeditiously out of the country,” he was quoted to have said.
For weeks, Washington has been building up its forces in the Middle East, deploying additional aircraft carriers, warships, fighter jets, and air defence systems.
Last Friday, President Donald Trump gave Tehran a 10-15-day ultimatum to reach a peace deal over its nuclear programme or face a US attack. He insisted that Iran must reach a meaningful agreement. But, on Thursday, at the conclusion of the indirect talks, the Iranian Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, said although “good progress” was made on the nuclear issue and sanctions relief in this round of talks, key differences remain.
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The US government is marching towards war with Iran, but has not provided a clear explanation for why it should attack Iran or how the country poses a threat to America. Mr Trump’s broadly described concerns over nuclear threat are contrary to those of the previous US President, who, when taking a major military action, spent months trying to justify this decision.
The New York Times reports that Mr Huckabee told the mission that the warning followed meetings and phone calls through the State Department.
During the meeting, officials agreed that the safety of embassy staff was a priority and decided to exercise an abundance of caution.
Should the US attack Iran, Israel is likely to be targeted for retaliation. Iran is likely to strike the US military bases and other strategic US assets in the country and also in the region.
PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that Iran has promised to respond “decisively” to US military aggression.
Iran said if attacked, it would consider “all bases, facilities, and assets of the hostile force” in the region as “legitimate targets.”
On Thursday, the spokesman for the Iranian Armed Forces, Abolfazl Shekarchi, cautioned Washington against any “unwise actions,” stating that it would trigger a response from Iran’s Armed Forces “never experienced before in history.”
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Although both parties completed their round of talks in Geneva on Thursday without reaching an agreement, the Iranian Foreign Minister, Mr Araghchi, said further talks would take place in less than a week.
The State Department earlier issued a travel advisory, urging US citizens to reconsider travelling to both Israel and the West Bank.
It has also issued similar advisories elsewhere in the Middle East. On Monday, the US embassy in Lebanon asked all non-emergency personnel and their families to leave the country.
Other nations are taking the same steps. On Wednesday, Australia instructed the families of its diplomats in Israel and Lebanon to leave.
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