Iran crisis: US calls on personnel in region to withdraw, Saudi takes a stand

Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, called on the UN secretary-general and the Security Council to denounce the United States for provoking violence and issuing threats of military action against Iran.

In a letter sent to UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Somalia’s UN ambassador Abukar Dahir Osman, the Security Council’s rotating president for January, Iravani alleged that US President Donald Trump is inciting violence within Iran.

The unrest has led to significant travel disruptions, cancelled flights and foreign governments issuing safety warnings for their citizens.

The situation has led to widespread transport interruptions and communications blackouts, prompting foreign ministries worldwide to reassess travel guidance for their nationals.

Among those urging people to avoid non-essential travel are US, India, Canada, Kuwait, and Pakistan.

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The United States began withdrawing personnel from key Middle East bases, a US official told Reuters this evening, calling it a precautionary posture change.

The move followed warnings from Tehran that it would strike American bases in the region if Washington intervened militarily in Iran.

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has told Iran it will not allow its airspace or territory to be used to harm it, two sources close to the kingdom's government told AFP on Wednesday.

The G7 nations on Wednesday were "deeply alarmed at the high level of reported deaths and injuries" in a protest crackdown in Iran. AFP reported that the nations said they were ready to impose more sanctions if the violence continued.

"The members of the G7 remain prepared to impose additional restrictive measures if Iran continues to crack down on protests and dissent in violation of international human rights obligations," the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, as well as and the high representative of the European Union, said in a joint statement.

Iranian demonstrators' ability to get details of nationwide protests out to the world has been given a strong boost, with SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service dropping its fees to allow more people to circumvent the Tehran government's strongest attempt ever to prevent information from spilling outside its borders, activists said Wednesday.

The move by the American aerospace company run by Elon Musk follows the complete shutdown of telecommunications and internet access to Iran's 85 million people on Jan. 8.

Iran's top judge hinted at fast trials and executions for those who were detained in nationwide protests against the country's theocracy, even as activists said Wednesday that the death toll rose to levels unseen in decades, with at least 2,586 people killed so far.

Iran's judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, made the comments about trials and executions in a video Tuesday, despite a warning from US President Donald Trump that he would "take very strong action" if executions take place, reported AP.

Spain's foreign ministry on Wednesday urged its citizens to leave Iran, where rights groups say a crackdown on mass protests has killed hundreds of people and caused thousands of arrests.

"Spaniards who are in Iran are recommended to leave the country making use of the available means," the ministry said in an updated travel advisory quoted by AFP.

US President Donald Trump was quoted as saying by AFP on Wednesday that he had been told that "executions" had stopped in Iran.

During an event at the White House, Trump said he had been told on "good authority" that the "killing in Iran is stopping. It's stopped...and there's no plan for executions," without providing further details.