With Operation Epic Fury underway, the State Department has been providing critical information to Americans abroad, particularly in the Middle East.
Yes, the State Department is actively securing military aircraft and charter flights for American citizens who wish to leave the Middle East.
We’ve been in direct contact with nearly 3,000 Americans abroad. American citizens should call 1-202-501-4444 for assistance with… https://t.co/Fj9qcvljoC
— Dylan Johnson (@ASDylanJohnson) March 3, 2026
Tuesday afternoon, ahead of his scheduled Senate briefing regarding the operation, Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to reporters at the Capitol.
Regarding options available for Americans who wish to leave the Middle East, Rubio highlighted the efforts undertaken to assist and emphasized the importance for those individuals to provide their contact information so that the government can reach them and coordinate.
.@SecRubio: “We have identified and continue to identify charter flights, military flight options, and expanded commercial flight options… Here’s the message I want to deliver Americans who are in the Middle East and in need of assistance…. We need to know where you are. We… https://t.co/Xj3dKYp51x pic.twitter.com/M9hUJc4BS8
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 3, 2026
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We have identified and continue to identify charter flights, military flight options, and expanded commercial flight options, meaning working with the airlines to send bigger airplanes with more seats and a combination of those three things. The impediment we’re facing now, in many cases, we’ve had a couple instances in which we have planes in the air and on the way, and unfortunately, the airspace gets closed, and they have to turn back around. So we’re working through those challenges.
Here’s the message I want to deliver Americans who are in the Middle East and in need of assistance: It is very important — and I ask this of the networks as well — it is important for you to please put both the website and the phone numbers on your screens because we need to know where you are. We need to know — we need to have contact information for Americans that need assistance. They have to register with us because as these options begin to open up, and as they open up, we have to be able to call you. We have to be able to reach you. We have to be able to know where you’re staying so we can get this information to you and coordinate appropriately.
And it’ll be a variety of methods: charter flights, military flights and transports, expanded commercial opportunities, and in some cases land routes that will allow them to go to neighboring countries who might have open airports at that point. So it’s a lot of different things here that need to happen in order to move people. But it all starts by knowing that you’re there. It all starts by knowing where you are and how we can get a hold of you. So I’m asking the networks and all of the media outlets: Please publicize the two phone numbers that we put out, as well as the website, so people can contact us and register. We’ve had thousands of people call already. As I said, we’ve identified 15 — almost 1600 — that are requesting assistance with departure, but we need you to please be able to identify that.
If you know anyone who’s attempting to leave the Middle East and is in need of assistance, please be sure to share with them the State Department contact information included above.
Editor’s Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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