The US said Wednesday it ordered non-emergency staff at two Pakistani consulates to leave the country, and granted permission for staff to leave missions in Saudi Arabia, Cyprus and Oman as Iran retaliates to US-Israeli raids. The US State Department ordered non-emergency US government employees and the family members of US government personnel from US consulates in Lahore and Karachi to leave Pakistan due to “safety risks”, the US embassy in Pakistan said in a statement. It said there was no change to the status of its embassy in the capital Islamabad. The department also “authorized non-emergency US government employees and US government employee family members to leave” Saudi Arabia, Oman and Cyprus “due to safety risks.”On Tuesday, the department said that it was taking “historic action” to assist citizens, who wish to depart the Middle East and return to the United States. Since then, Iran has expanded its retaliatory missile and drone barrage across the Middle East, hitting on Tuesday a US consulate and base as the United States and Israel said they had pummeled key sites inside Tehran.

Source: Dhaka Tribune March 04, 2026 12:56 UTC