US Begins Partial Evacuation of Baghdad Embassy

Pentagon Sends More Troops to Secure Embassy Grounds

The US State Department has announced a partial evacuation of the massive US Embassy in Iraq today, as the security situation in Baghdad worsens and the nation’s war grows.

Officials declined to say how many staff were to be evacuated, but insisted a “substantial majority” would remain. An estimated 5,300 employees work at the embassy, the largest on the planet.

The employees will be moved to US consulates in safer parts of Iraq, or to the US Embassy in Amman, Jordan. The State Department also issued an admonition to avoid travel to Iraq.

The Pentagon has also confirmed that it is sending more troops to guard the embassy grounds. Details are scant on this as well, but speculation is that it will be around 100 additional troops.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.