As a result of recent attacks on American troops and people in the area, the US State Department advised US travelers on Sunday not to visit Iraq.
The travel warning states, “Do not travel to Iraq due to terrorism, kidnapping, armed conflict, civil unrest, and Mission Iraq’s limited capacity to provide support to US citizens.”
Since Israel and Hamas terrorists in Gaza started fighting, there has been an increase in strikes on US forces in Iraq and Syria. Over a dozen drones and four cruise missiles fired from Yemen by the Houthis, who are backed by Iran, were downed by a US destroyer last week.
The State Department stated in a statement that the alert came after the ordered evacuation of eligible family members and non-emergency U.S. government employees from the US Embassy Baghdad and US Consulate General Erbil “due to increased security threats against US personnel and interests.”
As regional tensions surge during the Israel-Hamas war, which started after the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing over 1,400 people, Washington is on high alert for activities by Iran-backed groups.
Since then, Israel has responded with lethal airstrikes on Gaza, a 45 km (25 mi) long strip of territory that is a part of the Palestinian territories it occupies. Gaza is home to 2.3 million people, and Hamas has controlled it politically since 2006. According to Palestinian sources, nearly 4,700 individuals have died as a result of Israeli airstrikes.
The State Department stated on Sunday that “US government personnel in Baghdad are instructed not to use Baghdad International Airport due to security concerns.”
In recent weeks, the United States has dispatched a sizable naval force to the Middle East, including two aircraft carriers, their support ships, and around 2,000 Marines.
The Pentagon said on Saturday that the US would deliver extra Patriot air defense missile system battalions as well as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to the Middle East.
