Polish PM Urges Citizens To Leave Iran: ‘In a Few Hours, There May Be No Possibility To Evacuate’
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Thursday urged Polish citizens in Iran to leave the country immediately, warning that evacuation routes could soon be cut off as security conditions worsen.
“In a few hours there may be no more possibility to evacuate Poles from Iran,” Tusk said, calling on “all Poles in Iran” to depart without delay.
Poland has previously organized evacuations during periods of heightened Middle East tensions, including operations in which Polish citizens exited Iran via neighboring countries before being flown home, according to Polish state media and the foreign ministry.
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In early February, the US State Department issued a second warning urging Americans to depart immediately. The Virtual US Embassy in Iran said Americans should prepare to leave without relying on US government assistance, citing growing security risks, restrictions on communications and unpredictable travel conditions. The first US warning was issued in January amid mass protests and violent crackdowns.
Israel’s state broadcaster Kan reported Thursday that Israel has raised its level of military readiness and is assessing that a confrontation with Iran could begin “within days” and may develop into a campaign lasting several weeks.
The alerts coincide with reports of a major US military buildup in the Middle East. US online outlet Axios reported, citing open-source flight radar data and a US official, that the Trump administration last week sent a second aircraft carrier strike group to the region. According to the report, more than 50 fighter jets, including F-35, F-22 and F-16 aircraft, have moved to the Middle East over the past 24 hours.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the current deployment of US air power is the largest in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The newspaper said the buildup would allow for a longer campaign than the US strike on Iranian nuclear facilities during the Israel-Iran war last June, which involved B-2 bombers.
