CNN
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The US states and defense departments have made efforts to arrange for the resignation of non-essential staff from locations around the Middle East, according to U.S. officials and sources familiar with the efforts.
It is not clear what is causing the sudden change in attitude, but defense officials said the US Central Command is monitoring “development of tensions in the Middle East.”
President Donald Trump is aware of the recent HR movement, White House officials said.
The reason for the growing security concerns in the region is not clear, but a planned departure comes as tensions involving Iran and Israel have recently escalated as the Trump administration continues to pursue a new nuclear deal with Iran.
Authorities say Defense Secretary Pete Hegses has allowed voluntary departures for military dependents from locations in the Middle East.
“The safety and security of our service members and their families remains our number one priority, and the US Central Command (CENTCOM) is monitoring the development of tensions in the Middle East,” authorities said.
The State Department is also preparing to order non-essential staff to depart from the US embassies in Iraq, Bahrain and Kuwait, due to increased security risks in the region.
The US consulate in Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraqi, will also be ordered to depart non-essential staff, sources said. Iraqi government officials said personnel moves had nothing to do with his country’s security stance.
The State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Trump said in a new interview that Tehran could be “delayed” to strike the deal, saying that he hasn’t grown much in his confidence to sign a deal with Iran, which is holding the country’s nuclear ambitions down.
“I’m more and more confident about it. They seem to be late. I think that’s a shame, but I’m not more confident than I did a few months ago,” Trump said in an interview with the New York Postpodcast released Wednesday.
“Something happened to them, but I’m not very sure there’s a deal going on,” he continued, saying it was his “instinct” and telling him that the deal is moving further from reach.
CNN also reported Wednesday that Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop talking about the attack on Iran, according to sources familiar with the conversation.
The two leaders spoke on the phone Monday. Trump later said the phone was “very good and very smooth.”
Last month, CNN reported that the US is getting new information suggesting Israel is preparing to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, according to several US officials who are familiar with the latest information. Two intelligence sources said the US observed signs of Israel’s military stance, including the movement of air force ammunition and completion of air movement.
Officials warned that it is not clear that Israeli leaders have made a final decision, and said there is deep disagreement with the US government about the possibility that Israel will ultimately act.
Iran’s defense minister warned on Wednesday that if nuclear talks with the US fail and a conflict breaks out, the US will be “forced to leave the region.”
Brigadier General Aziz Nasirzadeh said in such a scenario that “the enemy is certainly seriously injured”, but did not specify whether the “enemy” is the United States, Israel, or both.
In his comments released by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, the defense minister said that in U.S.-Iran’s talks, some opposing officials “made threatening statements and warned of a potential conflict if a potential conflict was not reached.”
“In that case, the US has no choice but to leave the area as all bases are out of reach of Iranian forces and not to target all targets of the host country,” Nasirzadeh said.
Reported by CNN’s Kevin Liptak, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Samantha Waldenberg, Eugenia Yosef and Oren Liebermann.