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

Washington: The State Department is pulling out non-essential government personnel and their eligible family members from the US 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 US citizens," the official said.

A source at the US 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.

The US has built up one of its biggest military deployments in the Middle East, with President Donald Trump warning on Thursday that "really bad things will happen" if no deal is reached to solve a longstanding dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme. ⁠Iran has threatened to ‌strike US bases in the region if it is attacked.

"Should employees occupying emergency positions wish to depart post, please review alternative arrangements to fill the emergency position and consult ‌with your regional bureau Executive Office as necessary," an internal State Department cable on the pullout seen by Reuters said.

US interests were repeatedly targeted ⁠in Lebanon in the 1980s during the 1975-90 civil war, during which the U.S. held the Iran-backed Hezbollah responsible for attacks including the 1983 suicide bombing against the ‌U.S. Marines headquarters in Beirut that killed 241 servicemen and a 1983 suicide attack on the ‌U.S. embassy in Beirut that killed 49 embassy staff.

Talks on Thursday, divisions remain

Meanwhile, U.S. ‌Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is scheduled to travel to Israel on Saturday and meet with ‌Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was still planning to do that but "the schedule remains subject to change," the U.S. official said.

The US wants Iran to give up its nuclear program, but Iran has adamantly refused and denied it is trying to develop an atomic weapon. ⁠Washington views enrichment ⁠inside Iran as a potential pathway to nuclear weapons.

Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday that he expects to meet with Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff in Geneva on Thursday, adding that there was still "a good chance" of a diplomatic solution.

Both sides remain sharply divided - even over the scope and sequencing of relief from crippling U.S. sanctions - following two rounds of talks, a senior Iranian official told Reuters.

Citing officials on both sides and diplomats across the Gulf and Europe, Reuters reported on Friday that Tehran and Washington are sliding rapidly toward military conflict as ​hopes fade for a diplomatic settlement.

On Sunday, Witkoff said the president was curious as to why Iran has ​not yet "capitulated" and agreed to curb its ​nuclear programme.

It would be the second time the U.S. and Israel have attacked Iran in less than a year, following U.S. and Israeli airstrikes against military ​and nuclear facilities last June.