U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has authorized the voluntary evacuation of military dependents from locations across the Middle East, a U.S. defense official said Wednesday.
He said that the safety and security of service members and their families remain the highest priority. Hegseth said the U.S. and Central Command (CENTCOM) are closely monitoring tensions in the region and are in close coordination with the State Department and regional allies.
The United States has a military presence across the major oil-producing region, with bases in Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
The U.S. State Department has confirmed the evacuation of diplomatic staff from its embassy in Baghdad, Iraq. However, Iraq's state news agency cited a government source as saying Baghdad had not recorded any security indication that called for an evacuation.
Meanwhile, a U.S. official said the State Department had authorized voluntary departures from Bahrain and Kuwait.
The U.S. embassy in Kuwait said in a statement on Wednesday that it had "not changed its staffing posture and remains fully operational."
The State Department updated its worldwide travel advisory on Wednesday evening to reflect the latest U.S. posture.
“On June 11, the Department of State ordered the departure of non-emergency U.S. government personnel due to heightened regional tensions,” the advisory said.
The decision by the U.S. to evacuate some personnel comes at a volatile moment in the region. Trump's efforts to reach a nuclear deal with Iran appear to be deadlocked and U.S. intelligence indicates that Israel has been making preparations for a strike against Iran's nuclear facilities.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the Middle East "could be a dangerous place," adding that the United States would not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.
The move follows the warning from Iran’s Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh who said that U.S. military bases in the region would be targeted if a conflict breaks out between Tehran and Washington over Iran’s nuclear program.
Although nuclear talks continue through Oman, disagreements over Iran’s uranium enrichment program persist.
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Asha Bhosle, the legendary Indian playback singer whose voice defined generations of Bollywood music, has died at the age of 92 in Mumbai, prompting an outpouring of tributes from across India and beyond.
Russia and Ukraine accused each other of violating a 32-hour ceasefire introduced to mark Orthodox Easter on Saturday (11 April). Russian officials said Ukrainian drones attacked targets in the Kursk and Belgorod border regions, injuring five people.
Israel has reprimanded Spain’s most senior diplomat in Tel Aviv after a giant effigy of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was blown up in a Spanish town.
Hungarians vote in elections on Sunday that could see the end of hard right nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s more than 15 year rule. Opinion polls show Orbán’s Fidesz party trailing 45-year-old Péter Magyar’s centre-right opposition Tisza party.
Hungarians vote in elections on Sunday that could see the end of hard right nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s more than 15 year rule. Opinion polls show Orbán’s Fidesz party trailing 45-year-old Péter Magyar’s centre-right opposition Tisza party.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators held their highest-level talks in half a century in Pakistan on Saturday in an effort to end their six-week war, as President Donald Trump said the U.S. military had begun the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz.
Amid fragile calm, António Guterres urged constructive U.S.- Iran talks, while Pope Leo XIV warned violence is spreading. Lebanon's President said an Israeli strike killed 13 security personnel in Nabatieh.
Donald Trump’s flagship plan for post-war Gaza has come under scrutiny after reports that its financing is falling short of expectations, claims firmly rejected by the White House-backed Board of Peace.
At least 30 people were killed on Saturday in a stampede at Haiti’s Laferrière Citadel World Heritage Site, with authorities warning that the death toll could rise.
Nine suspects were arrested on Saturday (11 April) in connection with a terror attack targeting a police post in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators held their highest-level talks in half a century in Pakistan on Saturday in an effort to end their six-week war, as President Donald Trump said the U.S. military had begun the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iraqi parliament on Saturday elected Kurdish politician Nizar Amedi as the country's new president, following a parliamentary election last November.
Talks between the United States and Iran opened in Islamabad on Saturday (11 April) as the two sides sought to turn a fragile temporary ceasefire into a lasting agreement, amid disputes over Lebanon and sanctions relief.
Kazakhstan and Armenia are moving to deepen bilateral ties as shifting dynamics in the South Caucasus reopen long-blocked transport routes and create new economic opportunities.
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