As Israel-Hamas war escalates, US readies plans for mass evacuations of Americans

As Israeli forces gear up for a ground invasion of Gaza, the Biden administration is readying plans to evacuate hundreds of thousands of American citizens from West Asia fearing that the bloodshed in Gaza cannot be contained. As per a report by the Washington Post, four officials with knowledge of the US government’s contingency planning said Americans residing in Israel and neighbouring Lebanon are of particular concern. They emphasised that an evacuation of that magnitude is considered a worst-case scenario and that other outcomes are seen as more likely. But, one the officials said, it “would be irresponsible not to have a plan for everything.” The Israeli forces, aided by US ammunitions and military advisers, have been preparing for the much-expected ground offensive against Hamas terrorists responsible for the surprise and unprecedented onslaught on October 7. US ‘deeply alarmed’ by prospect of Israel-Hamas war escalation Three people familiar with the discussions said the US administration, which has been constantly supporting Israel, is “deeply alarmed” by the prospect of escalation and over the past few days, it has switched its focus towards the complicated logistics of abruptly having to relocate a large number of people. As per the estimates by the US State Department, there are about 600,000 US citizens in Israel and as many as 86,000 are believed to be in Lebanon when Hamas attacked. Why is US concerned? The US’ major concern is in Lebanon because of Hezbollah, a political party and terrorist group that has controlled the country since 1992. Hezbollah has already accepted training and weapons from Iran that has been prompting concerns of it attacking Israel from the north, which could possibly lead to a two-front war that would stretch Israeli forces. “This has become a real issue,” one official said, adding, “The administration is very, very, very worried that this thing is going to get out of hand.” The report said the top US officials did not want to discuss such contingency planning in public, hoping to avoid setting off a panic among Americans in the region. But their posture has shifted in recent days to convey the anxiety about other actors entering the conflict. The US administration is also concerned about the street protests that have been spreading across Arab world, which the country feels are putting its citizens and personnel in the region at heightened risk. The bombing of Gaza has sparked regional fury at Israel and its treatment of Palestinians — an issue some officials believed no longer carried as much importance in the Arab world, the Washington Post report said. The US State Department, last week, had issued an advisory to all its citizens worldwide “to exercise increased caution” due to “increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, [and] demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests.” The warning came after demonstrations that erupted in response to the Israel-Hamas war and broader anger in the Arab world over Washington’s full political, economic and military backing of Israel.