WASHINGTON ¨C The State Department is pulling out non-essential government personnel and their eligible family members from the U.S. embassy in Beirut, a senior State Department official said on Monday, amid growing concerns about the risk of a military conflict with Iran.
¡°We continuously assess the security environment, and based on our latest review, we determined it prudent to reduce our footprint to essential ?personnel,¡± said a senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
¡°The Embassy remains operational with core staff in place. This is a ?temporary measure ?intended to ensure the safety of our personnel while maintaining our ability to operate and assist U.S. citizens,¡± the ?official said.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.