BAGHDAD: More personnel from the United States diplomatic mission departed Iraq over the weekend as part of ongoing efforts to reduce embassy staffing amid “regional tensions,” a US official said Sunday after Washington attacked Iranian nuclear sites.
“As part of our ongoing effort to streamline operations, additional personnel departed Iraq on June 21 and 22,” the US official told AFP.
The departures were a continuation of a process that started last week “out of an abundance of caution and due to heightened regional tensions,” he added.
The embassy and the consulate remain operational.
Earlier on Sunday, Washington joined Israel’s war with Tehran as President Donald Trump announced US strikes on Iran’s main nuclear sites.
Iran had threatened to target US military bases in the region if conflict breaks out.
Fears are growing in Iraq over a possible intervention by Iran-backed armed factions, who have threatened Washington’s interests in the region if it were to join Israel in its war against Iran.
Iraq, which has for years been navigating a delicate balancing act between Tehran and Washington, has long been a fertile ground for proxy battles.
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Additional US embassy staff left Iraq due to ‘regional tensions’: US official
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Additional US embassy staff left Iraq due to ‘regional tensions’: US official
- The departures were a continuation of a process that started last week
- The embassy and the consulate remain operational
Lebanon says two dead in Israeli strikes
- Lebanon’s health ministry: An ‘Israeli enemy strike on a vehicle on the Jadra-Siblin road in the Shouf district killed one person and wounded five others’
- one person was killed in an Israeli strike on a vehicle in Odaisseh near the border with Israel
BEIRUT: Israeli strikes on Lebanon on Tuesday killed two people, one of them near Beirut, the Lebanese health ministry reported, with Israel saying it had targeted Hezbollah operatives.
Despite a November 2024 ceasefire that was supposed to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, Israel has kept up strikes on Lebanon and has also maintained troops in five southern areas it deems strategic.
Lebanon’s health ministry said an “Israeli enemy strike on a vehicle on the Jadra-Siblin road in the Shouf district killed one person and wounded five others.”
The area is around 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the capital.
An AFP photographer saw a damaged goods truck with emergency workers and army personnel deployed at the scene.
Earlier, the ministry said one person was killed in an Israeli strike on a vehicle in Odaisseh near the border with Israel.
In separate statements, the Israeli army said it targeted two Hezbollah members, without providing further details.
On Sunday, Israeli strikes killed three people in separate parts of Lebanon according to the health ministry, with Israel saying it killed Hezbollah members.
Around 340 people have been killed by Israeli attacks on Lebanon since the ceasefire agreement went into force, according to an AFP tally of health ministry reports.
Israel usually says the strikes target Hezbollah members and infrastructure, and aim to stop the group from rearming.
Tuesday’s attacks come as the ceasefire monitoring committee, which includes France and the United States, is set to meet later this week.
According to the ceasefire, Hezbollah was required to pull its forces north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border with Israel, and have its military infrastructure in the vacated area dismantled.
Under a government-approved plan, Lebanon’s army is to disarm Hezbollah south of the Litani by the end of the year, before tackling the rest of the country.
Despite a November 2024 ceasefire that was supposed to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, Israel has kept up strikes on Lebanon and has also maintained troops in five southern areas it deems strategic.
Lebanon’s health ministry said an “Israeli enemy strike on a vehicle on the Jadra-Siblin road in the Shouf district killed one person and wounded five others.”
The area is around 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the capital.
An AFP photographer saw a damaged goods truck with emergency workers and army personnel deployed at the scene.
Earlier, the ministry said one person was killed in an Israeli strike on a vehicle in Odaisseh near the border with Israel.
In separate statements, the Israeli army said it targeted two Hezbollah members, without providing further details.
On Sunday, Israeli strikes killed three people in separate parts of Lebanon according to the health ministry, with Israel saying it killed Hezbollah members.
Around 340 people have been killed by Israeli attacks on Lebanon since the ceasefire agreement went into force, according to an AFP tally of health ministry reports.
Israel usually says the strikes target Hezbollah members and infrastructure, and aim to stop the group from rearming.
Tuesday’s attacks come as the ceasefire monitoring committee, which includes France and the United States, is set to meet later this week.
According to the ceasefire, Hezbollah was required to pull its forces north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border with Israel, and have its military infrastructure in the vacated area dismantled.
Under a government-approved plan, Lebanon’s army is to disarm Hezbollah south of the Litani by the end of the year, before tackling the rest of the country.
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