Washington, March. America has asked its citizens to immediately leave major parts of the Middle East. The US has warned of ‘serious security risks’ as tensions rise in the region. Secretary of State Marco Rubio released a video to all American citizens present in the Middle East, saying that your safety is our top priority.
Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Mora Namdar said the State Department, due to serious security risks, urges Americans to immediately leave Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen, using available commercial transportation.
A US official said that an inter-agency task force working around the clock has been activated and is operating from a special operations center in Washington. It includes experts in consular affairs, civil defense and diplomatic security. A crisis communications team is coordinating daily calls with more than 110 inter-agency participants and affected embassies.
The department has issued more than 30 STEP messages and 15 security alerts, to which 50 lakh people have responded. One particular WhatsApp channel has more than 15,000 followers and has reached 650,000 people. Officials are monitoring global and regional media trends and translating leadership statements into Persian.
Let us tell you that America issued this warning after the conflict with Iran started. Concerns have grown over the Gulf region’s large migrant communities and critical energy infrastructure. The Smart Traveler Enrollment Program allows U.S. embassies and consulates to send real-time security updates and contact citizens directly in case of emergencies.
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