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US pulling non-essential staff from embassy in Beirut amid Iran tensions

23-02-2026 | 10:49

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US pulling non-essential staff from embassy in Beirut amid Iran tensions

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 the 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.

A source at the U.S. embassy said 50 people had been evacuated, while an official at Beirut airport said 32 embassy staff, along with family members, had flown out of Beirut airport on Monday.

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