US evacuates non-emergency personnel from Baghdad, Erbil

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States is evacuating some of its personnel from its embassy in Baghdad and consulate in Erbil because of recent attacks on US troops in the country.

“On October 20, 2023, the Department ordered the departure of eligible family members and non-emergency U.S. government personnel from U.S. Embassy Baghdad and U.S. Consulate General Erbil due to increased security threats against U.S. government personnel and interests,” reads the State Department’s Iraq travel advisory updated on Sunday.

In the past week, Iraqis angry about Washington’s support for Israel in its war with Hamas have protested near the US embassy in Baghdad and Iran-backed militia groups have multiple times fired rockets and armed drones at US troops based in Anbar and near Erbil. One civilian contractor died of a heart attack suffered while sheltering during an attack on Wednesday.

American forces in northeast Syria have also come under attack.

On Saturday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced new deployments to the Middle East “to further strengthen the Department of Defense posture in the region.” He said the decision was made after a discussion with President Joe Biden about “recent escalations by Iran and its proxy forces across the Middle East Region.”

The new deployments include a carrier strike group and Patriot missile defense batteries. Austin did not say where they would be located.