US diplomatic missions in at least ten Middle Eastern capitals issued coordinated security alerts on Saturday, advising American citizens to consider departing the region or to prepare to do so should hostilities intensify. The warnings, posted by embassies in Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, cited a risk of “unforeseen escalation” in the conflict with Iran. The US State Department separately cautioned that Iran and groups supporting it could target American interests worldwide, including businesses and institutions, and urged those outside the region to “seriously reconsider” travel there.

Viewed from Washington, the alerts followed a direct threat by President Donald Trump, who told reporters on Friday that the US would hit Iran “very hard” and that military operations could continue. The State Department described the Iranian regime as “unpredictable,” pointing to recent attacks on areas without warning and the expansion of strikes to locations not previously targeted, such as Egypt. The US embassy in Jerusalem advised citizens to locate the nearest bomb shelter, while the mission in Amman told Americans to avoid military bases in Jordan, which have come under Iranian missile fire. The Beirut embassy remains on “ordered departure status,” with non-emergency personnel relocated outside Lebanon.

Iran’s military central command accused Washington of “escalating tensions” and moving toward a “total regional war.” In a statement read on state television, its head, Ali Abdollahi, warned that any country serving as a “defensive shield for criminal and aggressive America will be engulfed by the flames of war.” An adviser to Iran’s supreme leader cautioned against attacks on Iranian infrastructure, while a senior security official told the Tasnim news agency that Tehran had prepared a comprehensive response plan targeting vital Israeli and US energy infrastructure in the region.

The diplomatic warnings coincided with fresh maritime incidents. A drone struck a US-owned gas vessel moored in an Egyptian port on Wednesday, causing a fire, and an “unknown projectile” hit a tanker off the coast of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, according to a British maritime agency. Traffic through the strait has dropped sharply, with Iran maintaining de facto control over navigation since the war began on 28 February, when the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran. Overnight exchanges of fire resumed this week after a days-long lull, though no strikes were reported overnight Friday to Saturday.

US media reports, citing unnamed officials, said Washington and Israel were planning a bombing campaign against Iranian energy infrastructure, possibly as soon as this weekend. CNN and ABC News later reported that it remained unclear whether Israel would be directly involved. The State Department’s alerts are advisory, not an evacuation order, and the situation across the region is described as “fluid” and subject to rapid change.