The United States Embassy in Jerusalem has issued a security alert stating that American government workers and their families in Israel remain indoors, as Iran has hit the Jewish state with drone and missile strikes.
The alert, first made on Saturday and then posted again Sunday morning, comes as Iranian strikes have so far killed at least 10 people in Israel and injured upwards of 180.
‘As a result of the current security situation and ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, the U.S. Embassy has directed that all U.S. government employees and their family members continue to shelter in place until further notice,’ The embassy’s alert, posted on its website and X, said.
‘Given the proximity of missile and debris impacts, the U.S. Embassy has offered employees living near the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv the option to voluntarily relocate to new accommodations further away,’ the alert continued.
Meanwhile, Israeli airspace remained closed, with arrivals and departures, according to a statement from an Israel Airports Authority spokesperson.
Iran’s bombardment of Israel came in response to Israel’s strikes against Iranian nuclear and military targets, which Israeli officials said were preemptive measures as Iran drew closer to developing nuclear weapons.
‘I’ll tell you what would have come if we hadn’t acted. We had information that this unscrupulous regime was planning to give the nuclear weapons that they would develop to their terrorist proxies,’ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on X on Saturday. ‘That’s nuclear terrorism on steroids. That would threaten the entire world.’
Israel has also made clear that strikes against Tehran are far from over, issuing a warning to the people of Iran.
‘Urgent warning to all Iranian citizens: All individuals currently or soon to be present in or around military weapons production factories and their supporting institutions must immediately evacuate these areas and not return until further notice,’ the Israel Defense Forces said in an alert posted in Farsi. ‘Your presence near these facilities puts your life at risk.’
The IDF contrasted their approach with that of Iran, which has launched attacks at civilian areas.
‘This is the message we spread to Iranian citizens. While Iran chooses to strike without warning, we choose to warn a innocent [sic] people even if it means giving up the element of surprise,’ the IDF posted to X Sunday morning. ‘We warn them, in Persian, across many channels. Because human life comes first to us. That’s the difference between us and our enemy.’
Fox News’ Landon Mion contributed to this report.