Amid rising tensions between the United States and Iran, the latter has ordered the departure of nonessential diplomatic staff and their family members from Lebanon, Associated Press has reported, citing a State Department official.
The official has told the AP that this decision to vacate has been taken following an ongoing review of the security situation. “It is a precautionary step,” the official said.
The operations, meanwhile, keep running at the embassy after the drawdown, but only essential personnel will stay. “There is no formal announcement of the decision,” the official told AP, on condition of anonymity.
He stressed that the move was a temporary one, and the embassy remains functional.
Also Read: Iran-US Nuclear Talks Set To Resume In Geneva On Feb. 26
Another very important development has been revealed to the AP by yet another state department official, on condition of anonymity. He has told AP that Secretary of State Marco Rubio may postpone his planned visit to Israel this weekend.
The developments are significant, keeping in view the escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran, notwithstanding the fact that the two countries will enter the third phase of talks in Geneva on February 26. The talks are being held to reach a negotiating point on Iran's nuclear programme. Trump, however, has been upping the ante and has given Iran 10 to 15 days to accept a deal, or it will be “unfortunate” for the country.
Several White House sources have been quoted by the media who have maintained that a war with Iran was "imminent" and “it will be bigger than the airstrikes” carried out by Israel on Tehran last June. The sources have stressed that it will be a joint US-Israel operation.
Tehran issued a statement saying that any state would react to an act of aggression as part of its inherent right to self-defence ferociously. “So that's what we would do,” ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said at a briefing in Tehran, the AFP reported.
Following the statement, thousands of cellphones buzzed in Iran, and an anonymous SMS was delivered, which read, “The US President is a man of action. Wait and see.”
Amid the rhetoric, the US has been strengthening its military presence in the Middle East. AFP has reported that the US military has 13 warships stationed in the Middle East, including the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, which arrived last month, nine destroyers and three frigates.
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