Simon Lewis
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Thursday said it had restricted personal travel for Israeli expatriates and their families outside the Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Beersheba metropolitan areas, following Iranian threats of retaliation against regional adversaries. Announced.
Iran has vowed to retaliate for the April 1 airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus, further escalating tensions in a region already tense due to the Gaza war.
“Out of an abundance of caution, U.S. government employees and their families are restricted from personal travel outside of the greater Tel Aviv area (including Herzliya, Netanya, and Yihudah), Jerusalem, and Beersheba until further notice.” Announced. The U.S. Embassy said in a safety alert on its website Thursday. “U.S. government personnel are permitted to travel between these three regions for personal travel.”
The U.S. government has a policy of notifying all Americans through such alerts when it updates security measures for domestic personnel.
US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that Iran had threatened to launch a “significant attack against Israel” and that the US remained committed to the security of its allies.
Asked about the security warning, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller noted that Iran has made public threats against Israel.
“We are constantly evaluating the situation on the ground,” Miller said at a news conference. “While we won't discuss the specific assessments that led us to restrict personal travel for our employees and their families, it is clear that we are monitoring the threat environment in the Middle East, particularly Israel.”
(Reporting by Simon Lewis; Editing by Sandra Marler)
