US orders partial evacuation of Iraq Embassy, says dependents of troops can leave locations across Middle East
US missions in Baghdad and Erbil started evacuating most of their diplomats in response to unspecified security threats Wednesday, reports claimed. “President Trump is committed to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad. In keeping with that commitment, we are constantly assessing the appropriate personnel posture at all our embassies. Based on our latest analysis, we decided to reduce the footprint of our mission in Iraq,” the State Department said in an emailed statement.Defense secretary Pete Hegseth authorized the voluntary departure of US military dependents across the Middle East, Politico reported. The sudden move came after Iran’s defense minister threatened to strike American based in the region if negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program fail.Iran has repeatedly said its nuclear ambitions are focused on peaceful purposes like energy production. But Nasirzadeh said on Wednesday that “if a conflict is imposed on us…all US bases are within our reach.”The Baghdad embassy has already been on limited staffing, and the order will not affect a large number of personnel, according to the AP. The State Department is also authorizing the departure of nonessential personnel and their family members from Bahrain and Kuwait, giving them the option to leave the country.An Iraqi foreign ministry official told NBC a “partial evacuation” of US embassy staff had been confirmed due to what the official termed “potential security concerns related to possible regional tensions.” An US official told the outlet that there was no change in operations at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East and that no evacuation order had been issued for employees or families linked to the US embassy in Qatar, which was operating as usual.
