On 2nd March (local time), the United States urged its citizens to “depart now” from more than a dozen countries across the Middle East. The US Department of State has warned of serious safety risks as the war between Israel and Iran has intensified following US-Israeli strikes on Tehran. Notably, the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, was killed in the strikes. The advisory has come at a time when most airspaces are closed and there are very limited options to leave the countries mentioned in the list provided by the US State Department.
The @SecRubio @StateDept urges Americans to DEPART NOW from the countries below using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks. Americans who need State Department assistance arranging to depart via commercial means, CALL US 24/7 at +1-202-501-4444 (from… pic.twitter.com/vdplAik2Sq
— Assistant Secretary Mora Namdar (@AsstSecStateCA) March 2, 2026
State department issues urgent advisory
The US Department of State asked US citizens to leave 15 countries in the region, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Mora Namdar said that US citizens should use available commercial transportation to exit “due to safety risks”. Those requiring assistance were advised to contact emergency consular lines and enrol in the Smart Traveller programme for updates from the nearest US mission.
The advisory applies to Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The US Embassy in Amman, Jordan, earlier confirmed that its personnel had departed the premises due to a security threat.
An inter agency emergency task force has also been activated to coordinate Washington’s response to the escalating conflict.
Conflict expected to intensify
The evacuation warning has come at a time when the United States and Israel launched a barrage of strikes on Iranian military and nuclear linked targets over the weekend. Several top officials, including Khamenei, were killed. Tehran responded with missile and drone attacks on multiple US and Israeli positions across the region.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that “the hardest hits are yet to come”. US President Donald Trump said the conflict was projected to last four to five weeks but could extend further.
