TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The U.S. embassy in Israel told its staff on Friday they can leave the country and urged anyone considering leaving to do so immediately amid the looming threat of a U.S. strike against Iran.
U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee told embassy staff in an email that discussions with officials in Washington led to a decision authorizing those who wished to leave to leave.
A person involved in the U.S. delegation described the email to The Associated Press but was not authorized to share details. The email, sent just before 10:30 a.m., urged staff considering departure to do so as soon as possible, advising them to first focus on catching any flights out of Israel and then on to Washington.
“Those who wish to take AD should do so today,” Huckabee wrote, using an abbreviation for “Authorized to Leave.”
“While there may be outbound flights in the coming days, there may not be,” he added.
Huckabee said there’s no need to panic, but it’s important for those who want to leave to make plans as soon as possible.
The email came a day after Iran and the United States withdrew from the third round of nuclear talks in Geneva without an agreement. Technical discussions are scheduled to take place in Vienna next week.
U.S. Vice President Vance is scheduled to meet in Washington later on Friday with Omani Foreign Minister Badr Busaidi, who has been mediating during the talks, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting is private.
Earlier, Busaidi said significant progress had been made on Thursday, but Iranian and U.S. officials had yet to announce steps forward.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi did not provide specific details on Thursday but said “we have been clear from our side what needs to happen.”
Iran has not yet given the U.N. nuclear watchdog access to its nuclear facilities affected by the 12-day war in June, making it impossible to confirm whether it has stopped enriching uranium or the size of its stockpile, according to a confidential IAEA report distributed to member states and seen by The Associated Press on Friday.
Airlines including KLM Royal Dutch Airlines have announced plans to suspend flights from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport, and other embassies have developed plans to authorize flights from Israel and its neighboring countries.
At the same time, the British Foreign Office said that “British staff have temporarily withdrawn from Iran due to the security situation.” The embassy is said to be operating remotely.
Australia on Wednesday “directed all family members of Australian officials stationed in Israel to leave in response to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.” China, India and several European countries with missions in Iran also advised citizens to avoid traveling to the country.
China’s foreign ministry also advised Chinese citizens already in Iran to leave, according to Chinese state media.
At a town hall meeting Friday after the email was sent, Huckabee told staff he encouraged airlines to keep flying.
The evacuation authorization marks a new level of contingency planning as a large number of U.S. aircraft and warships build up in the Middle East.
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Sam Metz reported from Ramallah, West Bank. Seung Min Kim in Washington and Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut contributed to this report.
