'Due to increased regional tensions...': US Embassy in Israel restricts employees' travel
US embassy in Israel issues security alert to its employees amid rising tension in the region.
The US Embassy in Jerusalem Thursday issued a fresh security alert restricting its employees from traveling amid heightening tensions in the region between Israel and Iran. 'Due to the increased regional tensions, U.S.
government employees and their family members are restricted from travel outside the greater Tel Aviv (including Herzliya, Netanya, and Even Yehuda), Jerusalem, and Be'er Sheva areas until further notice,' the embassy said in a Thursday security alert.
The security alert came after the Trump administration announced scaling back the number of personnel in the Middle East. Defense secretary Pete Hegseth allowed voluntary departures of military dependents across northeast Africa, the Middle East and portions of South and Central Asia.
The State Department said it has ordered the departure of all nonessential personnel from the US Embassy in Baghdad based on its latest review and a commitment 'to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad.' The embassy already had been on limited staffing, and the order will not affect a large number of personnel.
In Thursday's alert, the US Embassy in Israel stated that it 'reminds U.S. citizens of the continued need for caution and increased personal security awareness — including knowing the location of the nearest shelter in the event of a red alert as security incidents, including mortar, rocket, and missile fire, and unmanned aircraft system (UAS) intrusions, often take place without any warning.'
Trump confirmed the precautionary steps that US has been taking. "They (US personnel) are being moved out because it could be a dangerous place, and we will see what happens...We have given notice to move out," he said.
Trump, who has previously said Israel or the US could carry out airstrikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations failed, gave a less-than-optimistic view about reaching a deal with Iran, telling the New York Post's "Pod Force One" podcast that he was "getting more and more less confident about" a deal.
"They seem to be delaying, and I think that's a shame. I'm less confident now than I would have been a couple of months ago. Something happened to them," he said in the interview recorded on Monday and released on Wednesday.
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