State Department not evacuating Americans from Lebanon at this time despite escalation concerns
US officials are not evacuating American citizens from war-torn Lebanon right now amid military escalations with Israel, the State Department confirmed Monday, as criticisms of the Harris-Biden administration’s past handling of Americans in conflict zones loom large.Spokesperson Matthew Miller would not reveal which options the State Department was considering nor any plans for a future evacuations during a press conference Monday, as criticisms of the Harris-Biden administration’s past handling of withdrawing Americans from conflict zones loom large.“We are not evacuating American citizens from Lebanon at this time.
We always conduct a prudent planning process.We have been doing that for some months, going back to October 7th,” Miller told reporters.“We are exploring other potential options should we need to.
But it’s not a decision we’ve made as of yet.”At the moment, the State Department has a Level 4 travel adversary against visits to Lebanon.“Due to the increased volatility following airstrikes within Beirut and the volatile and unpredictable security situation throughout Lebanon, the US Embassy urges US citizens to depart Lebanon while commercial options still remain available,” the advisory said.Last Friday, Israel conducted a strike on Dahieh in Beirut that killed Hezbollah’s notorious longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah, as the US-designated terrorist organization later confirmed.
Hezbollah has been sporadically exchanging fire with Israel since the day after Hamas’ bloody Oct.7, 2023 surprise attack on the Jewish state in which 1,200 Israelis were massacred.Over recent weeks, the military exchanges between the two have escalated.
Recently, Israeli special forces have embarked on strategic raids in southern Lebanon amid apparent preparations for a potential ground invasion of Israel’s northern neighbor, according to multiple reports.The US has an embassy in Beirut.Israel finished up its last invasion of Lebanon in 2006, which ca...