The United States is moving diplomats and their families and reducing staffing at several Middle East missions after U.S. intelligence warned of Iranian plans to attack Americans that were at an advanced stage, amid growing concern that regional tensions could worsen.
The State Department ordered non-emergency personnel and their families to leave Saudi Arabia. It announced temporary staffing reductions at U.S. embassies in Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Those four embassies remain open but are operating with restrictions.
Staff at those embassies have not been ordered to leave. Officials have also described the moves as a response to threats from Yemen’s Houthi movement, which is backed by Iran. In an unclassified memo dated October 23, Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton told Secretary of State Marco Rubio that intelligence showed Iran had increased efforts to target U.S. personnel.
The memo also said plans to kill people had progressed to an advanced stage. The memo did not identify specific targets or locations beyond the Middle East. It did not describe the alleged plots.
It did not say whether an attack was about to happen. Clayton said the warning had been shared with senior officials cleared to receive it. He offered to make more of the intelligence available to share.
That could allow State Department personnel who might be at risk to be informed. The staffing changes come as the administration weighs its Iran policy. U.S. officials have denied that the embassy reductions are connected to possible new strikes by the United States and Israel.