US advises embassy staff in Israel to leave now if they want, as risk of war hangs over Middle East

Associated Press

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The U.S. Embassy in Israel on Friday told its staff that it could leave the country and urged anyone considering departure to do so immediately, as the threat of an American strike on Iran looms.

U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee told embassy employees in an email that discussions with officials in Washington had led to a decision authorizing departures for those who wished to leave.

The email was recounted to The Associated Press by someone involved with the U.S. mission who wasn’t authorized to share details. Sent before 10:30 a.m., it urged staff considering departure to do so quickly, advising them to to focus initially on getting any flight out of Israel and to then make their way to Washington.

“Those wishing to take AD should do so TODAY,” Huckabee wrote, using an acronym for “authorized departure.”

“While there may be outbound flights over the coming days, there may not be,” he added.

Huckabee said that there was no need for panic, but for those desiring to leave, it was important to make plans soon.

The email came a day after Iran and the United States walked away from nuclear negotiations without a deal, in their third round of nuclear talks in Geneva. Technical discussions are scheduled to take place in Vienna next week.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to meet later Friday in Washington with Oman’s foreign minister, Badr al-Busaidi, who has been mediating during the talks, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting who spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting is private.

Earlier, al-Busaidi said that there had been significant progress made on Thursday, though officials from Iran and the United States haven’t announced steps forward.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Thursday offered no specifics, but said “what needs to happen has been clearly spelled out from our side.”

According to a confidential report by the International Atomic Agency circulated to member states and seen Friday by The Associated Press, Iran hasn’t granted the U.N. nuclear watchdog access to its nuclear facilities affected by the 12-day war in June, and as a result can’t confirm whether or not Iran has stopped its enrichment or the size of its stockpile.

Airlines such as Netherlands-based KLM have already announced plans to suspend flights out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport, and other embassies have also made plans for authorized departures from Israel and neighboring countries.

Meanwhile, Britain’s Foreign Office said that “due to the security situation, U.K. staff have been temporarily withdrawn from Iran.” It said that the embassy was operating remotely.

Australia on Wednesday “directed the departure of all dependents of Australian officials posted to Israel in response to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.” China, India and several European countries with missions in Iran advised citizens to avoid travel to the country as well.

China’s Foreign Ministry also advised its citizens already in Iran to leave, according to a statement reported by Chinese state media.

On a town hall meeting Friday after the email was sent, Huckabee told staff that he was encouraging airlines to keep flying.

The departure authorizations signal a new level of contingency planning as a massive fleet of U.S. aircraft and warships mass in the Middle East.

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