As Iran's response to Israeli and US warfare causes havoc across the Middle East, the US government is urging its citizens to immediately evacuate if they're in any of 14 countries in the region --something far easier said than done. 

"The [State Department] urges Americans to DEPART NOW...using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks," wrote Assistant Secretary of State Mora Namdar on X. Nearly the entire Middle East has been deemed too dangerous to stay in: Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, UAE and Yemen. Namdar encouraged those who are abroad and need assistance to call the State Department at +1-202-501-4444, and to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), which promises to deliver "the latest messages and updates from your nearest US Embassy or Consulate."  

For Americans in the region, four words in the State Department warning are certain to cause resentment: "using available commercial transportation." Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Iran, Syria and Israel have all closed their airspace, and other airline flights have been affected. That leaves some Americans feeling like they're unable to heed the warning, and wishing for an airlift. Speaking from Dubai, retired Maj. Gen Randy Manner (who notably makes recurring, Trump-critical appearances on CNN) told Erin Barnett: 

"As Americans we feel abandoned. I've talked to two embassy personnel at two different embassies -- they are in survival mode, quite frankly because, as we know, the administration  State Department reduced their budget by almost one half over the past year." 

Local embassies and consulates may be of little help. Not only has their staffing been reduced due to the war on Iran, but some of them have been beset by angry mobs infuriated over the Israeli-US murder of the Ayatollah Khamenei and his family, while others have come under fire. Over Monday night, the US embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia was reportedly hit by two drones. Early Tuesday morning, the American embassy in Kuwait announced it was "closed until further notice."  

Oliver Sims, a 24-year-old trying to return to Texas from a friend's wedding in India, got stuck in Doha and found the embassy there was overwhelmed with requests for help. "They had so many emergency calls coming in so they had to hang up on me,” he told NBC News. A call to Texas Sen John Cornyn's office didn't do much either. “They said they’ll let me know of any plans to extract U.S. citizens,” Sims said. 

The UAE on Monday announced that it has resumed aviation operations at Dubai International Airport -- the world's busiest for international flyers -- and Dubai World Central Airport. However, it said only a "small number" of flights had been authorized thus far. The airport had been evacuated after Iranian drone strikes.

As Iran pursues a strategy of punishing every country that facilitates the US military presence in the region, there's no reason to think there will be abundant "commercial transportation" options anytime soon. The effects will even be felt by those who aren't traveling in the Middle East. “An Iran-conflict-driven disruption is typically more geographically concentrated, but it can still be severe, because it affects some of the world’s most important east-west corridors and creates rapid knock-on effects,” Tony Stanton, consultant director of Strategic Air in Australia, told Al Jazeera.

Even where it's possible, anyone contemplating air travel in the sprawling war zone should pause to contemplate two past incidents, both of which involved Iran:  

• On July 3, 1988, a US Navy cruiser shot down Iran Air Flight 655 over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people on board. The incident happened as the Iraq-Iran war raged, with sailors mistaking the jet for a US F-14. 
• On Jan 8, 2020, the Iranian military shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 just after it took off from Tehran. That disaster happened five days after the United States killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike at Baghdad's airport. An Iranian mistook the jet for a cruise missile.   

Underscoring the peril in a different way, one can also look to this week's shootdown of three US F-15s, which has officially been attributed to friendly fire from Kuwaitis manning a Patriot interceptor system, though some observers wonder if that's a cover story meant to conceal a major Iranian success. The Pentagon says all crew members survived.