by Jacob Magid at The Times of Israel
The United States is drawing down the presence of people who are not deemed essential to operations in the Middle East due to the potential for regional unrest, the US State Department and military said Wednesday as tensions with neighboring Iran rose amid deteriorating nuclear talks.
“President Trump is committed to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad. In keeping with that commitment, we are constantly assessing the appropriate personnel posture at all our embassies. Based on our latest analysis, we decided to reduce the footprint of our Mission in Iraq,” a State Department official told The Times of Israel.
Trump later confirmed that some US personnel are being moved out of the Middle East “because it could be a dangerous place.”
“We’ll see what happens… We’ve given notice… Iran can’t have a nuclear weapon,” he told reporters before attending “Les Miserables” at the Kennedy Center in Washignton.
Earlier Wednesday, two US officials told The Associated Press that the State Department was preparing to order the departure of all nonessential personnel from the US Embassy in Baghdad due to the potential for regional unrest…