“According to Reuters, the United States is preparing a partial evacuation of their embassy in Iraq and will allow members of the families of servicemen to leave the Middle East because of increased risks to security in the region.”, – WRITE: www.pravda.com.ua
Source: Reuters with reference to American and Iraqi sources
Details: The publication notes that four US and two Iraqi sources did not specify what safety risks have prompted such a decision, and reports of possible evacuation have led to an increase in oil prices by more than 4%.
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At the same time, Reuters quotes the White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly, who answered the question about the report of partial evacuation without details: “The State Department regularly reviews the presence of American staff abroad, and this decision is made as a result of a recent audit.”
According to the White House representative, US President Donald Trump was informed about this decision.
The US Embassy in Kuwait said on Wednesday that “has not changed its staffing policy and continues to work fully.”
Reuters notes that partial evacuation occurs at the time of exacerbation of tension in the region, which has already been covered by a conflict after 18 months of war in Gaza, which increased fears of expanding the conflict between the US and Israel on the one hand and Iran and its allies on the other.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to strike on Iran if negotiations on his nuclear program, which advanced slowly, failed, and in an interview published on Wednesday, he stated that he was less believed that Tehran would agree to stop Uranus’ enrichment, which is a key requirement.
Defense Minister Iran Aziz Virzade also stated on Wednesday that if Iran was struck, he would respond with a blow to US bases in the region.
The United States has military bases in Iraq, Kuwait, Qatari, Bahrain and United Arab Emirates.
According to one of the US officials, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegset gave permission to export families of servicemen from different places in the Middle East.
Another American official said it concerns mainly members of families living in Bahrain, where most of them are based.
Another US official said: “The State Department is preparing for an organized departure of US Embassy Employees in Baghdad. They plan to use commercial means, but the US military is ready to assist as needed.”
The State Information Agency of Iraq, with reference to a government source, reported that Baghdad did not record any signs of security threat that would require evacuation.
One of the US sources of Reuters said that there was no change in the work of Al-Idead in Qatar, the largest military base in the Middle East, and that there was no order to evacuate US Embassy and Families related to the US Embassy, which operates in a normal mode.