By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump will attend a National Security Council meeting on Friday morning, the White House said late on Thursday after Israeli strikes on Iran that have put the Middle East on edge.
The meeting will be held at 11 am ET (1500 GMT) on Friday, the White House said.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
Israel said early on Friday Middle East time and late Thursday U.S. time that it had struck Iran to block Tehran from developing atomic weapons, and Iranian media and witnesses reported explosions including at the country’s main uranium enrichment facility.
U.S. top diplomat Marco Rubio called Israel’s strikes against Iran a “unilateral action” and said Washington was not involved while also urging Tehran not to target U.S. interests or personnel in the region.
The U.S. State Department said late on Thursday that the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem has directed all U.S. government employees and their family members to shelter in place until further notice.
CONTEXT
Trump had been seeking a new nuclear deal to place limits on Iran’s disputed uranium enrichment activities but the talks have appeared to be deadlocked.
Trump said earlier on Thursday an Israeli strike on Iran “could very well happen” but reiterated hopes for a peaceful resolution.
The U.S. military is planning for the full range of contingencies in the Middle East, including the possibility that it might have to help evacuate American civilians, a U.S. official told Reuters.
SECURITY ALERT BY U.S. EMBASSY
A security alert by the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem said the security environment was complex and could change quickly.
In response to security incidents and without advance notice, the U.S. embassy may further restrict or prohibit U.S. government employees and their family members from traveling to certain areas of Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the State Department said.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
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