US Embassies Urge Americans In Middle East To Prepare For Possible ‘Escalation’

United States embassies across the Middle East have warned American citizens to remain on high alert over the possibility of an “unforeseen escalation” in the regional conflict, urging them to be prepared to leave affected countries if the security situation deteriorates.

The security alert, issued on Saturday by US embassies in Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, came a day after US President Donald Trump threatened that Iran would be hit “very hard.”

Iran and the United States have been at war since February 28. Although a ceasefire briefly brought a period of calm, hostilities resumed after the truce collapsed, with both sides exchanging fresh attacks.

The prolonged conflict has disrupted lives across the Middle East for months and unsettled global energy markets.

“Americans in the region should consider departing, or be prepared to depart should there be escalation,” the security alert stated.

The embassies advised US citizens to monitor flight schedules, comply with instructions from local authorities and prepare for possible travel disruptions.

“Americans currently in the Middle East should exercise caution and heightened vigilance and should be prepared for flight cancellations, periodic airspace closures, and potential travel disruptions,” the advisory said.

In Jordan, Americans were specifically warned against visiting US military bases, which have recently come under Iranian missile attacks, while those in Israel were advised to identify the nearest bomb shelters.

The US Embassy in Jerusalem described Iran as unpredictable.

“The Iranian regime is unpredictable, as seen by its recent decisions to attack areas in the region without warning or provocations as well as to expand attacks to areas not previously targeted, such as Egypt,” the embassy stated.

Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Beirut said it remained on “ordered departure status,” meaning non-emergency US government personnel continued to operate from outside Lebanon.

Iran’s military, however, accused Washington of worsening tensions in the region.

“Any country serving as defensive shield for criminal and aggressive America will be engulfed by the flames of war,” Ali Abdollahi, head of Iran’s military central command, said in a statement broadcast on state television.

Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader, also warned against attacks on the country’s infrastructure.

“You calculate through military equations, but we respond with the logic of history,” he wrote on X.

“Attacking Iran’s infrastructure directly awakens the fault lines on which 250 years of your hegemonic architecture have been built.”

The latest warnings came amid renewed exchanges of fire between Iran and the United States after a brief lull in fighting last month, although no overnight strikes were reported between Friday and Saturday.

On Wednesday, a drone struck a US-owned gas vessel docked at an Egyptian port, triggering a fire. Egyptian authorities have launched an investigation but have not blamed any group for the attack.

Separately, a British maritime agency reported on Saturday that an “unknown projectile” struck a tanker off the coast of Oman as tensions intensified around the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has maintained effective control over navigation through the strategic waterway since the conflict began, requiring ships to seek permission and pay transit fees before passage.

Maritime tracking firm Kpler said shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz had declined sharply.

“With US and Iranian public positions still at odds, operators are closely monitoring traffic volumes, routing behaviour and any diplomatic developments that could reshape risk across regional shipping lanes in the days ahead,” the firm said.

The Middle East conflict erupted after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran, prompting retaliatory missile and drone attacks by Tehran across the region.

On the Lebanon front, Israel’s military said on Saturday that it killed three Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon, while one Israeli soldier sustained moderate injuries during what it described as a close-quarters encounter with Hezbollah militants.