US State Department urges Americans to 'depart now' from much of Middle East

The United States on Monday urged Americans to leave all of the Middle East from Egypt eastward due to safety concerns after the United States and Israel attacked Iran. The State Department "urges Americans to DEPART NOW from the countries below using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks," Mora Namdar, the assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, wrote on X, listing 14 countries.

The United States for now is asking Americans to leave commercially, although flights have been severely disrupted in much of the region, and has not organized its own evacuations. The advisory included Egypt, the most populous country in the region, which has had years of tense relations with Iran's Islamic republic but has seen little direct impact since the United States and Israel attacked on Saturday.

The advisory listed all Gulf Arab monarchies, which have prided themselves on stability and marketed themselves as safe commercial and transportation hubs. But Iran has been firing drones and missiles at these countries in retaliation to their hosting of US troops. The United States also urged Americans to leave Israel and the Palestinian territories as well as Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, all of which have been affected by the war.