US Deploys Flights as Middle East Conflict Escalates

The United States is arranging charter and military flights to evacuate citizens from parts of the Middle East as fighting between United States, Israel and Iran intensifies.

The US State Department has urged Americans to “depart now” from 14 countries, citing serious safety risks. These include Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the occupied West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. However, commercial flights across the region have been widely cancelled or suspended since strikes on Iran began.

Officials say nearly 3,000 Americans abroad are in direct contact with the department, and about 9,000 have already returned home. The government is helping citizens secure seats on available commercial flights where possible.

Hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals remain stranded. Estimates suggest between 500,000 and one million Americans live in the region, though exact figures are unclear.

The US embassy in Jerusalem said it is not currently able to evacuate Americans from Israel. France and the United Kingdom have also begun contingency efforts, urging their citizens to register for assistance as regional tensions continue to rise.