UK issues travel warning as Middle East crisis worsens

The UK government has issued a travel warning for Israel and Palestine and withdrawn its diplomatic staff from Iran, as the US advises embassy officials in Jerusalem they can leave.

The Foreign Office warned Britons against "all but essential" travel to Israel and Palestine on Friday due to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.

Its advice against all travel to some parts of Israel and Palestine remains in place.

Britain also moved some staff from Tel Aviv to "another location within Israel", amid concerns the security situation "could escalate quickly" and international borders might close with little notice.

The alert was issued shortly after Britain pulled its staff out of its embassy in Iran as a "temporary" precautionary measure.

"We have temporarily closed the British Embassy in Tehran, this will now operate remotely," a government spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told embassy employees in an email that a decision had been made to authorise departures for non-essential personnel and their families.

Mr Huckabee said in the email that staff who wish to leave should do so that day, adding "there may be outbound flights over the coming days, there may not be".

"Persons may wish to consider leaving Israel while commercial flights are available," the US embassy said.

The travel warnings are one of the strongest indications yet that a regional conflict could be imminent, as the threat of US military strikes on Iran looms.

They come just a day after talks between the US and Iran over its nuclear programme ended without an agreement.

The US State Department revealed on Friday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Israel early next week to "discuss a range of regional priorities including Iran, Lebanon, and ongoing efforts to implement President Trump's 20-Point Peace Plan for Gaza".

However, no further details were provided.

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Donald Trump set ​out his case for a possible attack on ​Iran in ⁠his State ⁠of the Union speech on Tuesday.

The US president said while he preferred a diplomatic ‌solution, he would not allow Tehran to obtain a nuclear weapon.

Read more:
'Significant progress' in US-Iran talks - but no deal
'It's tense here': Jerusalem braces for prospect of war

Mr Trump has previously threatened to take military action against Iran if a deal is not reached.

The US has spent the last month amassing a fleet of aircraft and warships in the region.

Iran has in turn threatened to attack Israel, raising the risk that military action could trigger another regional war.

A confidential report from the UN nuclear watchdog confirmed that Iran has not offered inspectors access to sensitive nuclear sites since they were bombed during the 12-day war launched by Israel last June.

Iran insists it has the right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes and denies pursuing a nuclear weapon.

(c) Sky News 2026: UK issues travel warning as Middle East crisis worsens