WASHINGTON: The largest US diplomatic drawdown in the Middle East since the Iraq War began more than two decades ago is creating an apparently unplanned-for crisis for the Trump administration as the United States and Israel strike Iran in a widening conflict.
The State Department has been forced to close several embassies to the public, shut down at least one consulate, order the departure of embassy staff and families from at least six nations, and advise Americans in 14 countries to leave the region immediately despite the war closing major airports and causing widespread flight cancelations.
Nonetheless, the department said Tuesday that more than 9,000 Americans had safely returned from the Middle East since the weekend, many of them without government assistance, and that it was actively assisting those who have reached out for help, including by securing military aircraft and charter flights.
“We’ve had a couple instances in which we have planes in the air, and on the way, and unfortunately, the airspace gets closed, and they have to turn back around,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters.
The department has been in contact with nearly 3,000 Americans wanting to leave the region or seeking information about how to depart, Dylan Johnson, assistant secretary of state for public affairs, said on X.
