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U.S. Moves to Withdraw Some Middle East Personnel as Prospects for a Nuclear Deal with Iran Fade
(Wall Street Journal) Nancy A. Youssef - The U.S. is moving to draw down its presence in parts of the Middle East to essential personnel, the State Department and Pentagon said Wednesday, as tensions with Iran rise. The State Department said that it ordered the departure of all nonessential personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and authorized the departure of nonessential personnel and family members from Bahrain and Kuwait. At the same time, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized the voluntary departure of military dependents from across the Middle East. Experts and former officials say that Israel could try to defuse what it sees as the threat to its security of a nuclear-armed Iran if U.S.-Iran talks on Iran's nuclear program are stymied.