Democrat senator slams State Dept. for bombing Middle East with no exit plan for Americans

Senator says government abandoned its own citizens

Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut accused the State Department of telling Americans to leave the Middle East immediately while doing almost nothing to help them get out.

Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called the response incompetent. After a classified briefing, he said the administration could barely get anybody out and had no advance plan.

He pointed out that the U.S. moved a carrier group into the region before strikes began, making evacuations foreseeable.

State Department urged commercial flights out

On Monday, March 3, the State Department told Americans in more than a dozen Middle Eastern countries to leave right away using commercial flights.

The advisory came three days after U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran started on Feb. 28. The department offered no government-organized way out.

The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem said it could not evacuate or directly help Americans leave Israel.

Several embassies across the region, including those in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, Qatar, and the UAE, closed or cut staff.

Strikes shut down major Gulf airports

The problem was simple: there were no flights. Major Gulf airports, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha, closed or faced heavy restrictions after the strikes began.

Iranian strikes directly hit Dubai International Airport and Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport. Airlines like Emirates, Qatar Airways, Etihad, and major U.S. and European carriers suspended or canceled flights.

Airspace over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Syria, and Israel stayed closed, stranding tens of thousands of passengers.

Stranded Americans described fear and frustration

Americans stuck across the region described growing panic.

One woman stranded in Bahrain said the State Department told her to evacuate, but there was simply no way to do it.

An Air Force Reserve veteran pointed out that the U.S. started the war and then told people to leave afterward.

Another American in Abu Dhabi described hearing bombings after landing for a connecting flight, realizing she had walked into a war zone. Some said they watched other countries get their citizens out while they waited.

Hotline told callers not to count on help

Secretary of State Marco Rubio directed stranded Americans to call a State Department hotline.

But when callers reached the number on Tuesday, an automated message told them not to rely on the U.S. government for assisted departure or evacuation.

The recording also said there were no evacuation points at that time. Multiple news outlets independently confirmed the message by calling the number themselves.

The department updated the recording later Tuesday evening, saying it was committed to helping Americans.

Democrats called it a dereliction of duty

Murphy was not the only Democrat speaking out. Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey, a former diplomat, called the belated evacuation warnings one of the biggest derelictions of duty he had ever seen.

Kim said up to one million Americans could be in the region and at risk.

Rep. Ted Lieu of California used nearly identical language, calling the lack of a plan an “absolute dereliction of duty.”

Kim said Americans faced an extremely dangerous moment with no government help and limited options.

Republicans raised concerns about preparedness

Republican lawmakers stopped short of blaming the administration but expressed worry. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he expected a ramped-up effort involving air assets to get people out.

Sen. Roger Wicker, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, noted that the military flotilla near Iran did not include an amphibious warship with Marines trained for civilian evacuations.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin said the risk to Americans was understood going in, adding that war is ugly.

Administration scrambled to arrange flights

By Tuesday, the State Department said it was working to get military aircraft and charter flights for Americans who wanted to leave.

Rubio said about 9,000 Americans had already left the region since the war began, including more than 300 from Israel. About 1,500 more were asking for help.

The department said it was setting up charter flights from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan, and that it would waive any requirement for Americans to pay back their travel costs.

Rubio blamed closed airspace for delays

Rubio said the biggest challenge was airspace closures that the U.S. does not control.

He said planes heading to pick up Americans had to turn back in some cases because airspace shut down while they were in the air.

The department had spent the previous 72 hours working on departure plans using a mix of charter, military, and commercial options.

Rubio urged Americans to register with the State Department so the government could reach them. Call centers had contacted about 3,000 Americans with departure guidance.

Trump said strikes happened very quickly

When reporters asked why there was no evacuation plan before the strikes, President Trump said it all happened very quickly.

He said he believed the U.S. was about to face an attack and needed to strike first, adding that Iran was getting ready to attack Israel and other countries.

Critics pointed out that moving a carrier group into the region ahead of time suggested the strikes were planned in advance. The lack of advance warnings to American civilians drew scrutiny from both parties.

Some flights resumed but disruptions continued

By mid-week, some limited flights took off from Dubai and other Gulf airports, but service stayed far below normal. The UAE said it was running flights through emergency air corridors and planned to expand them.

A few airlines, including Virgin Atlantic, resumed limited scheduled service out of Dubai and Riyadh.

But airspace closures remained in place in several countries, and flight disruptions kept affecting travelers worldwide. The State Department continued to urge Americans to call its hotline and register for updates.

Crisis raised questions about civilian safety planning

The situation raised tough questions about the government’s duty to help Americans evacuate from war zones it helped create. Lawmakers from both parties signaled they would press the administration on its preparedness.

For Americans abroad or planning travel, the crisis showed the risks of being in or near conflict zones.

The gap between the urgency of the State Department’s warnings and the help it actually offered became a flashpoint.

The episode may shape future debate over how the U.S. prepares for civilian safety before military operations.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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