State Department urges Americans to leave Middle East now

Eric Martin, Bloomberg News on Mar 2, 2026

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The U.S. State Department urged Americans to leave countries across the Middle East, citing “serious safety risks” from the war with Iran.

The security update, posted Monday on X by Assistant Secretary of State for consular affairs Mora Namdar, told Americans to “depart now via commercial means.”

In a video posted on his own X account, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the department’s top priority is the safety and the security of American citizens. Rubio condemned the “cowardly attacks” by Iran against other countries in the Persian Gulf, and said that the department since the start of the military campaign on Saturday has surged personnel and resources to help U.S. citizens with safety and security information.

Rubio urged Americans to register with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program and follow security updates via the department’s WhatsApp channel and social media.

President Donald Trump said that the bombing campaign that began Saturday would continue after the U.S.-Israeli alliance struck hundreds of targets across Iran.

Even still, Rubio said on Monday before briefing congressional leaders that the objective of the U.S. campaign was to destroy Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities, that it can be achieved without using ground forces, but that “the hardest hits are yet to come.”

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