The State Department on Monday urged Americans across the Middle East to depart as soon as possible using all available transportation, though many airports around the region remain closed as airstrikes persist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The weekend strikes by the U.S. and Israel on Iran have caused massive disruptions to U.S. embassies and consulates throughout the Middle East as Iran retaliates. The U.S. embassy in Bahrain is closed. In Kuwait, Americans have been told to stay indoors. In Jordan, diplomatic staff was temporarily evacuated Monday over a threat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Americans had been told to shelter in place until further notice as Iran retaliates across the region in response to the U.S.-Israel attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The State Department issued a \u201cworldwide caution\u201d alert for all Americans overseas on Saturday, the first since June 22, 2025, after the U.S. intervened in the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran. The State Department doesn\u2019t reveal its diplomatic footprint so it\u2019s unclear how many Americans are stationed in the Middle East.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But on Monday, State Department officials urged Americans to depart from Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Earlier in the day, President Donald Trump suggested the war could last a month or longer. U.S. and Israel have struck multiple targets, including Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps command and control facilities, Iranian air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and military airfields.Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the attacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Six U.S. service members have been killed in action, and 18 were seriously wounded, official said. The Iranian Red Crescent said more than 200 people have been killed and roughly 700 others have been injured in Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The State Department created a task force to help U.S. citizens, but as a growing number of U.S. embassies and consulates suspend routine and emergency services, Americans still in the region have been left with limited options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Airports in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha \u2014 including Dubai International Airport, one of the busiest in the world \u2014 are important hubs for travel between Europe, Africa and the West to Asia. All three were directly hit by strikes, according to The Associated Press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Oliver Sims, a 24-year-old content creator from Dallas, got stuck in Doha on his way back from a friend\u2019s wedding in India. He contacted the U.S. embassy there but said they couldn\u2019t offer him any immediate assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey had so many emergency calls coming in so they had to hang up on me,\u201d he told NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sims got in touch with his senator, John Cornyn, whose office reassured him they were aware of his location. \u201cThey said they\u2019ll let me know of any plans to extract U.S. citizens,\u201d he told NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sims said he feels relatively safe and has been able to work remotely from his hotel room in Doha, but his parents are worried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy parents are constantly calling\u201d he said, asking if he\u2019s ok and if there\u2019s any other way he can get out of the country. For now, Sims is staying calm, but he\u2019s hoping to get back to Dallas in time to celebrate his 25th birthday on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a video posted on X, Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlined how Americans can get in touch with State Department officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur number one priority is the safety and the security of American citizens everywhere in the world,\u201d Rubio said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Bahrain, after a strike on the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the capital city of Manama, Americans were warned to avoid all hotels as they may be a target for attacks. The U.S. Embassy remained closed and all regular and emergency consular appointments were cancelled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq and much of Pakistan, U.S. consular appointments were also suspended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Kuwait, where there is a continuing threat of missile and drone attacks, Americans have been told by the State Department not to go outside, but instead to take cover at home in the lowest floor away from windows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Kuwait airspace remains closed and all consular appointments for U.S. visas and American Citizen Services have been cancelled until further notice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Americans hoping to leave Jerusalem were told the U.S. Embassy is \u201cnot in a position\u202fat this time\u202fto evacuate or directly\u202fassist\u202fAmericans in\u202fdeparting\u202fIsrael.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As of Monday, Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv remained\u202fclosed, with no options for commercial or charter flights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chris Elliott and his 17-year-old daughter, Riley, of Lexington, North Carolina, traveled to Jerusalem with their pastor David Robinson on a religious pilgrimage last week, only to be stranded following the strikes. They\u2019ve been sheltering in their hotel room and going underground as retaliatory strikes continue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJust a couple of days into our adventure here, it turned dark, and we heard over the phones that all of a sudden we\u2019re in the middle of a war zone,\u201d Elliott told NBC News. \u201cAnd now we\u2019re stuck here and we can\u2019t find a way home. We\u2019re begging for somebody in the States to help us out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They said they heard it was possible the airports would reopen by Friday, but it wasn\u2019t clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs of now, we\u2019re still just sheltering in place in Jerusalem and waiting on an opportunity to get back home,\u201d Robinson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Sunday, three more U.S. Embassies, in Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, authorized the departure of nonemergency diplomats and their family members, allowing them to leave the country if they choose. The U.S. Embassy in Israel did so on Friday. In Lebanon, nonemergency staff was ordered to leave last Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n