The military actions that began on Saturday, along with Iran’s retaliatory strikes on neighboring countries, have resulted in widespread airspace closures, disrupting major aviation routes and leaving thousands stranded.
The department, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, revealed on Wednesday that the first U.S. government charter flight has departed the region heading to the United States, although few details were provided.
“Under the direction of @SecRubio, Department of State charter flight and ground transportation operations are actively ongoing and will continue to increase with more flights and transport services taking place today,” said Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson in a post on X on Thursday.
It remains unclear which countries the charter flights will be departing from.
American citizens currently in Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Israel are advised to complete a crisis intake form to receive updates regarding upcoming flights and ground transportation options. Johnson noted that a newly formed task force has provided assistance to over 10,000 Americans since the crisis began.
Initially, the State Department only issued warnings to U.S. citizens in Israel and Lebanon as tensions escalated, but Iran’s actions have now targeted U.S. missions and civilian infrastructure in numerous additional locations, including Gulf Arab nations that are key transport hubs.
Following the start of the conflict, U.S. security alerts were issued for Americans in Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Qatar, and Bahrain. On Monday, the U.S. urged Americans in 14 countries across the Middle East to leave the region using “available commercial transportation,” without providing any U.S.-government-approved alternatives, which drew criticism from U.S. lawmakers.
