State Dept orders departure from Iraq of non-emergency government workers

On January 4th, 2020, the United States Department of State ordered the departure of non-emergency government personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the U.S. Consulate in Erbil, Iraq. The Department cited the increased threat posed by Iranian-backed forces in the region as the reason for the departure. The Department instructed personnel to depart Iraq immediately and “depart Iraq as soon as possible” if they had already been there. All families of employees were also instructed to leave the country.