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TEL AVIV — The United States on Friday told some embassy staff that they could leave Israel — and that those who want to must do so quickly — as fears of an American attack on Iran fueled alarm throughout the region.
The message, conveyed in an email from Ambassador Mike Huckabee that was sent to the U.S. mission, instructed those wishing to leave to “do so TODAY.” NBC News has seen the email, which was first reported by The New York Times.
The guidance was issued out of “an abundance of caution” after meetings and calls through the night, including conversations with the State Department, Huckabee said in the email.
“There is no need to panic,” the email read. “For those desiring to leave, it’s important to make plans to depart sooner rather than later.”
He also urged anyone intending to leave to go ahead and book flights, citing the likely surge in demand out of Israel after the embassy’s move.
Meanwhile, the State Department announced Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Israel on Monday, to discuss “a range of regional priorities,” including Iran.
The latest round of talks between Washington and Tehran on Iran’s nuclear program ended Thursday with no sign of a breakthrough. President Donald Trump has overseen a huge military buildup in the Middle East, America’s biggest in decades.
Vice President JD Vance will meet Friday in Washington with Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who mediated the talks in Geneva, an individual who is being briefed on the talks and a source familiar with the meeting told NBC News.
The meeting will include other U.S. officials as well, the source said. This comes as ongoing discussions take place around what Trump may or may not do about Iran.
Iran has threatened to attack American bases in the region if it is attacked, and an escalation could also draw in Israel, which fought a 12-day war with Iran in June.
In a public notice early Friday, the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem confirmed that non-emergency government personnel and family members would be allowed to leave Israel, citing “safety risks.” It did not elaborate on the risks leading to the “authorized departure.” The move falls short of the ordered departure instituted this week for some personnel at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut.
Several countries have begun withdrawing dependents of diplomatic personnel and non-essential staff from some locations in the Middle East, or advising citizens to avoid travel to Iran.
Britain said Friday it had “taken the precautionary measure to temporarily withdraw U.K. staff from Iran,” citing the “ongoing security situation.”
China on Friday advised its citizens to avoid traveling to Iran and urged those in the country to evacuate as soon as possible, citing the security situation, state news agency Xinhua reported. Its embassy in Israel asked Chinese citizens living in the country to strengthen their security precautions and emergency preparedness, citing “rising security risks in the Middle East.”
Airlines such as the Netherlands-based KLM have already announced plans to suspend flights out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport.
The third round of talks in Geneva came after Trump made his clearest case yet for a possible attack as he oversees the sweeping military buildup in the region.
The negotiations in Geneva were “positive” from the Trump administration’s perspective, two people familiar with the talks told NBC News. The sources declined to share details of the talks.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also had a positive view of the talks, which he said were indirect and lasted about six hours.
Badr al-Busaidi, the foreign minister of mediator and key regional interlocutor Oman, said on X that the talks wrapped with “significant progress in the negotiation.”
He said the talks “will resume soon after consultation in the respective capitals,” with technical discussions expected next week in Vienna.
Matt Bradley is an international correspondent for NBC News based in Israel.
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