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Americans in Lebanon Warned to Leave ‘as Soon as Possible’

The advisory marks an escalation from earlier this week, when Americans were urged not to travel to the country.

The U.S. State Department raised a travel advisory warning for American citizens in Lebanon to the highest level on Thursday, saying they should plan to leave the country “as soon as possible.” The advisory, issued by the U.S. embassy in Beirut, warned Americans to make plans to depart “while commercial options are still available.” The embassy said it was closely monitoring the security situation on the ground, and added, “We recommend that U.S. citizen who choose not to depart prepare contingency plans for emergency situations.” The advisory is an escalation from earlier this week, when the State Department warned Americans to avoid traveling to Lebanon given “the unpredictable security situation” there. It also comes as protests have erupted in Lebanon over the Israel-Hamas conflict. Hezbollah, which has traded fire with Israeli forces along the border in recent days, called for “a day of unprecedented anger” ahead of the demonstrations.