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- Americans are being advised to shelter in place in many Middle Eastern countries.
- The US and Israel struck Iran on Saturday.
- Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar have closed their airspaces.
Americans in the Middle East have been advised to shelter in place after the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday.
The US Department of State Consular Affairs and related embassies posted on X that US citizens in countries including Iran, Bahrain, Jordan, UAE, Qatar, were advised to shelter in place until further notice.
The US Embassy in Jerusalem said it had directed all US government employees and their families to shelter in place, and that Israel had closed airspace to all civilian flights.
The US Department of State Consular Affairs also warned of imminent drone and missile attacks in Bahrain.
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As reported by Business Insider’s aviation reporters on Saturday, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar have closed their airspaces. A video shared on Flightradar24 showed airplanes leaving the region.
Of the approximately 3,400 flights scheduled to the region, 230 were cancelled as of 12 p.m. Central European time, while 40 due to fly Sunday were preemptively cancelled.
In a video statement posted on social media on Saturday, President Donald Trump vowed to destroy Iran’s missile program and navy and said the objective of the strikes is to “defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats.”
“My administration has taken every possible step to minimize the risk to US personnel in the region. Even so — and I do not make this statement lightly — the Iranian regime seeks to kill,” Trump said.
“The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost, and we may have casualties. That often happens in war,” Trump continued.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
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