The United States ordered the departure of non-emergency government personnel from its embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, a defensive step ahead of a potential U.S. military strike on Iran.
The move followed similar measures in the region by U.S. allies: The United Kingdom evacuated all embassy staff from Iran in January, and Germany, Serbia, Italy, Sweden, Poland and India have urged their citizens to leave Iran amid escalating tensions with the U.S. (The U.S. does not have diplomatic or consular relations with Iran.)
“We continuously assess the security environment, and based on our latest review, we determined it prudent to reduce our footprint to essential personnel,” the State Department said Monday.
It characterized the decision as a temporary safety measure and said the embassy remains operational. The department previously flagged Lebanon as a “Level 4,” its highest advisory level, urging Americans not to travel there.
State institutions in Lebanon are heavily controlled by Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shiite paramilitary group and political party that acts as one of Iran’s major regional proxies. The U.S. and Iran have been in fragile negotiations in recent weeks regarding Iran’s nuclear weapons program.
President Donald Trump has also called for regime change in Iran after widespread unrest in the country, and publicly feuded with the Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Both have threatened each other with military action.
The Pentagon sent the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest warship, and another aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, as well as other U.S. military assets to the Middle East. Meanwhile, Iran has warned that it will target U.S. military bases in the region if threatened.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.