US evacuating embassy staff, families from Israel

Some American embassy and staff and families of diplomats are being evacuated from Israel, as fears of broader conflict grow.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

The United States Embassy in Israel has started evacuating non-essential staff and diplomats’ families from Israel, an official confirmed to the Associated Press.

The evacuation comes as the conflict between Israel and Iran ramps up, with speculation that the U.S. will soon join the fighting.

Since the outbreak of the war on June 13th, Iran has launched heavy ballistic missile barrages on the Jewish State, which have killed 24 people and wounded at least 500.

Israel’s airspace has been closed since last Friday, leaving tens of thousands of Israelis stranded outside the country’s borders.

While tourists, diplomats, and Israeli citizens can leave Israel by using its land borders with Egypt and Jordan, numerous countries, including the U.S., have hinted at arranging rescue flights, which would see Israel’s airspace temporarily reponed for repatriation purposes.

“Urgent notice! American citizens wanting to leave Israel- US Embassy in Israel … is working on evacuation flights & cruise ship departures,” U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee wrote in an X post on Wednesday.

“You must enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). You will be alerted w/ updates,” Huckabee added.

However, the U.S. State Department said in a statement following Huckabee’s tweet that it had “no announcement about assisting private U.S. citizens to depart at this time.”

On Monday, the U.S. State Department on Monday elevated its travel advisory for Israel to a Level 4 “do not travel,” its most severe warning.

Japan, China and Indonesia said on Thursday morning that they are gearing up to help repatriate their citizens who are currently in Israel and Iran.

The Chinese Embassy said it was organizing buses to transport its citizens to the Taba border crossing with Egypt, near the Red Sea port city of Eilat.