Australian families urged to leave Israel , Lebanon

hardenexpress.com.au · Feb 26, 2026 · Collected from GDELT

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The families of Australian officials in the Middle East have been told to leave as experts warn of a high likelihood of military action in the region.Subscribe now for unlimited access. or signup to continue readingAll articles from our websiteThe digital version of Today's PaperAll other in your areaThe federal government has ordered the evacuation of dependents of diplomatic staff in Israel and Lebanon.Voluntary departures were also offered to diplomats' dependents in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Qatar."This is a precautionary measure, in view of regional tensions," the advice states."Australia's embassies in Tel Aviv and Beirut remain open."The situation in the Middle East is unpredictable."Embassies will also remain open in Jordan's Amman, Qatar's Doha and UAE's Abu Dhabi, along with the consulate in Dubai.The advice comes after US President Donald Trump laid out plans for a possible attack on Iran in his State of the Union speech to Congress. Mr Trump said he would not allow the world's biggest sponsor of terrorism to have a nuclear weapon.Iran and the US resumed negotiations earlier in February ​as Washington ‌builds up military capability in the Middle East.US President Donald Trump has laid out plans for a possible attack on Iran. (AP PHOTO)The order from the federal government would not have come lightly, associate professor of international relations at Flinders University Jessica Genauer said."I don't think at this stage the Australian government would necessarily know for sure that a US strike is going to take place, but they would evaluate that there's a very high likelihood, and they want to minimise any risk to Australian personnel," she told AAP."There is a high likelihood, given Trump's willingness to use military force, that there could be some kind of us strike on Iran, either within days, weeks or months."Because the region is so volatile and highly militarised there could be some kind of a threat to Australian personnel in the region, or there could be closures of airspaces."Iran ​has threatened to strike US bases in the region if it is attacked, but Tehran's top diplomat ​said ​on Tuesday that ​a deal with the US was "within ‌reach" if diplomacy was prioritised.The Australian government continues to advise citizens in Israel and Lebanon to consider leaving while commercial options are still available, the foreign ministry said.Opposition Leader Angus Taylor says the situation in the Middle East ''appears to be hotting up''. (Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS)The military build up by the US near Iran was the latest stage of continuing escalations in the region, Dr Genauer said."What we've seen from Trump's presidency in his second term so far is that where there is a military build up of US forces, we are likely to see some kind of military action," she said."What makes this situation so volatile is that we don't know how Iran would then respond, and whether or not that response might then cause a chain of escalation across the region."Even if we don't see military action take place in the very near future, we are going to see building tension between the US and Iran under the rest of the Trump administration. And I don't expect that to go away."Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said families "absolutely should be heeding that advice". "It's the best advice we have, and there's no question that the situation there appears to be hotting up," he told Sky News.Australian Associated Press