- Uptick in American attacks on Iran expected in coming day, US official tells CNN; Trump vows revenge on Iran for attack on US embassy in Riyadh, deaths of 6 troops in Kuwait
The United States on Monday urged Americans to immediately leave all the Middle East from Egypt eastward, including Israel, as Secretary of State vowed “even more punishing” strikes on Iran after the Islamic Republic launched retaliatory attacks on US assets in the region.
The State Department “urges Americans to DEPART NOW from the countries below using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks,” Mora Namdar, the assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, wrote on X.
Namdar listed Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar and Iran.
She also listed Egypt, the most populous country in the region, which has not been targeted in Iran’s retaliatory strikes despite years of tense relations with the Islamic Republic.
Americans in the Middle East can reach the US State Department 24/7 at 1-202-501-4444, and are urged to register with the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) via step.state.gov to get updates.
The US has not organized its own evacuation flights, and commercial flights have been disrupted across the region, with Israel, Qatar, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and Bahrain having shuttered their airspace. Israel is not expected to reopen its airspace before next week, and the country’s Ben Gurion Airport is closed.
“To all American citizens in the Middle East: your safety and security is our number one priority,” Rubio said in a subsequent social media post, urging US citizens in the region to follow State Department updates on social media and STEP.
He did not address the directive issued moments earlier for Americans to flee much of the Middle East.
Speaking about the bombing campaign that the US and Israel launched on Iran on Saturday, Rubio told reporters in Washington earlier Monday that “the hardest hits are yet to come from the US military.”
“The next phase will be even more punishing on Iran than it is right now,” he said.
Meanwhile, CNN quoted an unnamed senior US official as saying the US was preparing for a “major uptick” in attacks on Iran over the next 24 hours.
According to the official, Washington assesses that the bombing campaign so far has succeeded in degrading Iran’s defenses, and the next phase of strikes will target Iran’s missile production, drones and naval capabilities.
US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have said that the strikes on Iran aim to create the conditions for Iranians to topple the Islamic Republic.
Iran has responded with deadly ballistic missile and drone strikes on Israel and Arab countries that host US military bases.
Early on Tuesday, the US embassy in Riyadh was hit by two drones, resulting in a limited fire and some material damage, Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said on X, citing an initial assessment.
US outlet NewsNation later reported that Trump had said in an interview that Iran would soon find out Washington’s retaliation for the strike on the Riyadh embassy and the deaths of US military personnel.
Trump added that he doesn’t think American boots on the ground will be necessary in Iran, according to the outlet.
The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) on Monday said six US military personnel have been killed and 18 seriously wounded since the start of hostilities with Iran on Saturday.
The toll was up from the four people killed and five seriously wounded that CENTCOM reported on Sunday.
make an arrested landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72)) in support of Operation Epic
Fury, on Saturday, February 28, 2026.
The two additional casualties registered on Monday came after “US forces recently recovered the remains of two previously unaccounted for service members from a facility that was struck during Iran’s initial attacks in the region,” CENTCOM said, without elaborating.
The six slain service members were all killed in Kuwait.
According to a US official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, they were Army soldiers from the same logistics unit.
When asked about the deaths Monday, Hegseth said an Iranian weapon made it past allied air defenses “and, in that particular case, happened to hit a tactical operations center that was fortified.”
BY: The Times Union – Jacob Magid, and Emanuel Fabian
