Alright. Given those tensions between Israel and Iran now
involve open attacks between the two countries, tens of
thousands of Americans could now be in harm's way in
that region. Scripps News global affairs correspondent Maya Rodriguez
is live in our Washington DC newsroom with the latest
, and Maya, what does the Trump administration say
that it's going to do for those Americans in the
Middle East that may be in harm's way? Yeah
, you know, Holly, the State Department says
it's set up a task force to deal with exactly
that Americans who are in the region but having trouble
getting out. Given that the international airport in Tel
Aviv is shut down until further notice, the only
real way out of Israel at this point is to
travel by land into neighboring Jordan. Now on Wednesday
, the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee posted
on the social media platform X that the US is
working on organizing evacuation flights and cruise ship departures.
He said Americans needing assistance should register online with the
State Department's Smart Traveler program, also known as STEPP
. There are thousands of American citizens who live,
work, or visiting the area, but with And
Iran continuing to launch attacks at one another. The
risk is growing for Americans who could be caught in
the crossfire. On Monday, the State Department raised
its travel warning to Israel to level 4, the
highest level, which means do not travel there.
Here's what State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said this week
when asked about efforts to get Americans out. Over
the past week to help keep US citizens informed,
we have issued more than 30 security alerts to countries
in the region and updated the travel advisories for Iraq
and Israel. We remind you US citizens not to
travel to Israel or Iraq and not to travel to
Iran under any circumstances. We continue to monitor the
complex and rapidly evolving situation on the ground as we
continue to assess and address the needs of US citizens
. By the way, the US embassy in Israel
already began evacuating some diplomats and non-essential personnel. Now
American civilians are not the only ones in harm's way
. At least 40,000 American troops are in the region
, and there are fears that if the US is
involved in a strike on Iran, that Iran would
then launch attacks at American bases and ships. In
the meantime, the US military is increasing its assets
in the. Middle East that includes an additional aircraft
carrier along with several dozen refueling tankers. Those could
potentially be used to refuel Israeli or if need be
, American fighter jets in a conflict with Iran.
Holly, yeah, I know it's a scary time
. I have a friend whose daughter was studying there
and they were, uh, evacuated by boat.
So thank you for that update. Important news.
Scripps News global affairs correspondent Maya Rodriguez live for us
. Thank you.