The U.S. State Department says non-essential staff and family members are being evacuated from the U.S. embassy in Lebanon due to security concerns.
In a new travel warning for Lebanon issued on September 6, the department also urged private American citizens to depart Lebanon. The move comes as the U.S. administration and Congress debate military strikes on neighboring Syria.
Washington alleges that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime launched a chemical weapons attack last month that killed more than 1,400 people near Damascus.
The Shi'ite militant group Hizballah, an ally of Assad that has sent fighters into Syria, is based in Lebanon.
In a separate advisory, the State Department recommended that U.S. citizens defer non-essential travel to southeastern Turkey and authorized its consulate in Adana to evacuate non-essential staff.
In a new travel warning for Lebanon issued on September 6, the department also urged private American citizens to depart Lebanon. The move comes as the U.S. administration and Congress debate military strikes on neighboring Syria.
Washington alleges that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime launched a chemical weapons attack last month that killed more than 1,400 people near Damascus.
The Shi'ite militant group Hizballah, an ally of Assad that has sent fighters into Syria, is based in Lebanon.
In a separate advisory, the State Department recommended that U.S. citizens defer non-essential travel to southeastern Turkey and authorized its consulate in Adana to evacuate non-essential staff.