By Rabia Iclal Turan
WASHINGTON (AA) - The US State Department issued a travel advisory Saturday that urged Americans in Lebanon to leave while commercial flight options are available.
"Due to the unpredictable nature of ongoing conflict between Hizballah and Israel and recent explosions throughout Lebanon, including Beirut, the U.S. Embassy urges U.S. citizens to depart Lebanon while commercial options still remain available," according to the advisory that used an alternative spelling for the Lebanese group.
"At this time, commercial flights are available, but at reduced capacity. If the security situation worsens, commercial options to depart may become unavailable," it added.
The US "strongly" urged Americans in southern Lebanon, near the borders with Syria, and or in refugee settlements to immediately depart those areas.
Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have intensified recently amid an escalation in cross-border warfare since the start of Israel’s deadly war on the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 41,400 victims, mostly women and children, following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, on Oct. 7 last year.