US urges citizens to leave UAE and Middle East immediately

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US urges citizens to leave UAE and Middle East immediately

March 3, 2026

WASHINGTON,— Americans in the United Arab Emirates were urged on Monday to leave the country without delay as the United States expanded its security warning to more than a dozen nations across the Middle East following joint U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran.

The State Department said the advisory was driven by safety concerns tied to the widening conflict.

Mora Namdar, the department’s assistant secretary for consular affairs, advised U.S. citizens to depart using commercial transportation while flights remain available.

The UAE was among a broad list of countries covered by the warning. The advisory also applies to Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Yemen.

In recent days, the department had already updated travel guidance to recommend against travel to several countries in the region.

Earlier Monday, the U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan, said its personnel had left the embassy site because of what it described as a threat. Officials did not provide further details.

A U.S. official said the State Department has established an inter agency emergency task force to manage developments and coordinate the American response as tensions continue to escalate.

The warnings come after military action began on Saturday, when the United States and Israel launched a series of strikes on targets inside Iran.

The attacks killed several senior Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iranian authorities responded with strikes against multiple U.S. and Israeli locations across the region, targeting several Gulf Arab countries, including the UAE.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that the conflict had been expected to last four to five weeks but acknowledged that it could continue beyond that time frame.

The fighting has widened into a broader regional war and has left many people dead. Energy markets reacted sharply after Iranian officials threatened to fire on ships attempting to move through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway that carries a significant share of the world’s oil supply.

The threat contributed to a rise in energy prices.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Energy Secretary Chris Wright are expected to outline measures on Tuesday aimed at easing the pressure from higher energy costs, Marco Rubio said. Rubio spoke ahead of a scheduled briefing with congressional leaders about the military strikes.

“We anticipated this could be an issue, and Secretary Wright and Bessent will begin to roll out those steps, starting tomorrow, to mitigate, to mitigate against the impact that could have,” Rubio said.

Officials said the situation remains under close review as the conflict continues to unfold across the Middle East.

(With files from Reuters)