Article #249346

Australia advises dependants of officials in Israel and Lebanon to leave amid vast US military buildup in the region

More countries have told citizens to leave Iran and the surrounding region as airlines scale back flights amid mounting tensions between Washington and Tehran.

As a day of critical talks over Iran’s nuclear programme was set to begin, and as a vast US military buildup continued in the Middle East, the Trump administration warned of drastic consequences if Iranian negotiators failed to make significant concessions.