Australia asks ‘non-essential’ officials to leave Lebanon

Australia on Friday asked "non-essential" officials to leave Lebanon, following a similar directive issued recently for its personnel in Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the departure of Australian officials posted to Lebanon was "due to the deteriorating security situation."

A "small number" of officials will remain in the country to provide consular support to Australians, Wong added on US social media company X.

The directive comes amid Israeli airstrikes targeting cities and towns across Lebanon.

Lebanon's Health Minister Rakan Nasser El Din reported that the attacks have caused 687 deaths, including 98 children, and 1,774 injuries.

Tensions escalated after Israel and the US launched joint attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, killing more than 1,300 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and over 150 schoolgirls, and injuring more than 10,000 others.

Tehran responded with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets. Eight US service members have been killed since the conflict began.

On March 2, the Iran-allied group began attacking Israeli military sites in Lebanon in response to repeated Israeli strikes and the killing of Iran's then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a US-Israeli operation.

Israel retaliated with a military campaign in Lebanon, conducting airstrikes on Beirut's southern suburbs and areas in the south and east of the country, and on March 3 began a limited ground incursion in southern Lebanon.