U.S. brings war to Middle East, trapping thousands of Americans with no way home

Joint strikes trap thousands across the Middle East

The U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, 2026, and the fallout hit American travelers fast.

Iran fired back with drones and missiles across Gulf states, hitting airports, embassies, and civilian areas. Major hubs shut down.

Airspace closed. Tens of thousands of travelers, including thousands of Americans, suddenly had no way out.

The State Department urged all Americans to leave 14 countries immediately.

Airports shut down across seven countries

More than 20,000 flights were canceled across seven major Middle East airports in the first days of the conflict, according to flight-tracking data.

Dubai International Airport, one of the world’s busiest, took damage and shut down. Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, and Doha also suspended flights.

Many stranded Americans were not even visiting the Middle East as a final stop.

They were just passing through Gulf hubs on their way somewhere else when everything closed around them.

Four U.S. embassies closed after strikes

Four U.S. embassies shut their doors: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Beirut, and Jerusalem. The embassy in Riyadh took the worst of it.

Two Iranian drones hit the building, causing structural damage and starting a fire. A drone also struck near the U.S. Consulate in Dubai, where a fire was contained.

Embassies in Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, Qatar, and the UAE kept operating but with far fewer staff. The Jordan embassy was temporarily evacuated after a threat.

Americans describe fear and hours on hold

Stranded Americans said they felt abandoned. Some reported hearing missile interceptions from their hotel rooms.

One traveler from Chicago said she called State Department numbers for days but waited on hold for hours. An American in Bahrain said the government told her to leave but gave her no way to do it.

Some had been on layovers or connecting flights when the conflict started.

A former acting assistant secretary of state for diplomatic security said the government should have warned Americans before the strikes began.

State Dept. says it helped 9,000 Americans leave

The State Department said it fielded calls from nearly 3,000 Americans asking for help. Over 9,000 Americans safely returned from the region in the first days, according to the State Department.

The department said it arranged charter flights, military aircraft, and expanded commercial options to get people out. Secretary Marco Rubio pointed to airspace closures as the main obstacle.

The government also waived any requirement for citizens to repay travel expenses tied to the crisis.

State Dept. hotline told callers not to expect help

Rubio publicly urged Americans to call a State Department hotline for help.

But the automated recording on that line told callers not to rely on the U.S. government for evacuation. It stated there were no U.S. evacuation points at that time.

The State Department did not directly address the contradiction when reporters asked about it.

Stranded Americans said the gap between what officials promised and what the hotline actually said made an already frightening situation worse.

Ambassador Huckabee says embassy had no options

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said the embassy could not evacuate or directly help Americans leave. He described departure options as “very limited.”

Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv was closed with no commercial or charter flights running. Americans in Israel received advice to consider crossing into Egypt by land.

Some Americans on religious pilgrimages and at sporting events ended up sheltering in hotel bomb shelters while they waited for guidance.

Lawmakers from both parties raise concerns

Democratic Sen. Andy Kim said issuing evacuation warnings three days into the war, with airspace already closed, showed a lack of planning.

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy called the situation incompetent, saying the government was telling people to leave but refusing to help them do it.

The AP described the situation as the largest U.S. diplomatic drawdown in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq War.

A small number of Republican lawmakers also raised questions about how prepared the administration had been before the strikes launched.

Other nations evacuated their citizens faster

Multiple stranded Americans noticed that other countries were moving their citizens out while Americans waited. The UK, France, Germany, Italy, and the Czech Republic arranged evacuation flights within days.

The UAE government covered food and hotel costs for tens of thousands of stranded travelers, regardless of nationality. The Philippines began working on exit plans for Filipino workers across the region.

The speed of those responses drew attention and added to the criticism of how the U.S. handled its own citizens.

Six U.S. service members killed in Kuwait

Six American service members died in the first days of the conflict. Four were Army Reserve soldiers killed in a drone attack at Port Shuaiba, Kuwait.

They were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command out of Des Moines, Iowa. President Donald Trump said more casualties were likely.

The Pentagon said the attack was under investigation.

Gas prices jump as conflict hits global markets

The conflict hit American wallets quickly. Oil prices surged and the Dow dropped more than 1,000 points as the fighting widened.

Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global energy supplies. Gas prices in the U.S. jumped 11 cents overnight.

Travel insurance generally does not cover acts of war, leaving many stranded travelers facing unexpected costs out of pocket.

Gulf airports connect Europe, Asia, and the Americas, so the disruption spread well beyond the Middle East.

No clear end in sight for stranded Americans

Trump suggested the conflict could last four to five weeks or longer. Some airports have resumed limited flights, but the situation shifts quickly.

The State Department continues arranging departures but has acknowledged it cannot guarantee safety. Airspace closures could be extended at any time as strikes and counterstrikes continue.

How many Americans remain in the region is still unclear, though officials say the number could be very large.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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