Four Embassies Reduced, Remain Open

WASHINGTON — The United States is reducing staff at four of its embassies in the Middle East, amid intelligence warnings that Iran is stepping up efforts to target American personnel. The four affected missions are the US embassies in Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

Even with staff reductions, the four embassies remain open. According to an Associated Press report cited by several media outlets, the missions had already been operating in a limited status before the latest reductions, and their personnel were not ordered to leave the countries where they are stationed.

This step differs from the policy in Saudi Arabia. There, at the start of the same week, the State Department ordered non-emergency U.S. government personnel and their families to leave, following escalating threats.

Intelligence Memo: Iran's Plot Enters Advanced Stage

The warning was contained in a one-page memo from Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday (24/10/2026). The unclassified memo was first obtained by Axios and later reported by the Associated Press.

In the memo, Clayton wrote that US intelligence received information that Iran had substantially increased its efforts to target US personnel. He also warned that Iran's lethal efforts against US citizens had reached an advanced stage in the Middle East and several other countries.

The memo did not detail specific targets, locations, or countries outside the Middle East region, and did not state whether an attack was imminent. Clayton was said to have offered to share broader intelligence information with State Department personnel who might be at risk.

Houthi Threats and Denials Over Attacks

A U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the information said the staff reduction was linked to threats from Iran as well as from Iran-backed Houthi groups in Yemen. When announcing the reduction, the State Department initially highlighted the danger from the Houthis, without directly mentioning the threat from Iran.

Officials denied that the staff withdrawal was linked to a possible new US and Israeli attack on Iran. President Donald Trump himself dismissed comments by his envoy to Turkey, Tom Barrack, who said a US strike on Iran could happen this weekend.

This tension coincides with military alertness in the region. Media reports mention two US aircraft carriers in the area, while Washington and Tehran remain at odds over Iran's nuclear program and regional activities.