US warns its citizens to leave Iraq
The US embassy in Baghdad has warned its citizens in Iraq to leave “immediately” after a missile hit the building early on Saturday.
In its warning, the US embassy said citizens should “leave Iraq now”.
“US citizens choosing to remain in Iraq are strongly encouraged to reconsider in light of the significant threat posed by Iran-aligned terrorist militia groups,” the embassy wrote.
As Iran has launched strikes at US targets across the Middle East, the US has urged its citizens to leave more than a dozen countries.
Separately, the US said on Saturday it had ordered non-emergency government employees and the relatives of government employees to leave Oman, according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump has repeated a call for allies to help secure the Strait of Hormuz – here’s why the oil shipping lane matters
The US president earlier posted on Truth Social, urging the UK and other nations to join the US in sending ships to the passage. In a follow-up post, he said countries receiving oil through the strait “must take care” of it
In an interview with NBC, Trump says he is not ready to make a deal with Iran “because the terms are not good enough yet”, adding the US may hit Iran’s Kharg Island “a few more times just for fun”
Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz was only closed to Tehran’s “enemies”
Strikes are continuing across the Middle East, with a fire still burning at the port of Fujairah in the UAE after it was targeted by a drone attack early on Saturday
In Iran, a man from Tehran says he disagrees with the US’s strikes on Kharg Island, where 90% of Iran’s crude oil passes through. “At this pace we will end up with a ruined Iran,” he tells BBC Persia
