• The department ordered “non-emergency U.S. government employees”, at both the Embassy in Baghdad and the Consulate in Irbil, to leave the country.
• The order applies primarily to full-time diplomats posted to Iraq by State Department headquarters in Washington, and visa services in Iraq would be suspended as a result. Contractors who provide security, food and other services will remain in place for now.
• The administration had received intelligence related to “Iranian activity” that put U.S. facilities and service personnel at “substantial risk”.