JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has drawn down staff at embassies and consulates across the Middle East as U.S. diplomatic posts come under fire from Iranian drones and missiles. The State Department is also now scrambling to help Americans stuck in transit or who went to countries that are caught in the crossfire. But as NPR's Michele Kelemen reports, many Americans have been confused by the guidance.
MICHELE KELEMEN, BYLINE: Eric Kumbier (ph) and his wife teach at the American School in Doha, Qatar. And he's been trying to keep track of the advice from the State Department. First, it was shelter in place, then get out now. But he and his friends and family haven't had luck getting clear information from the State Department's hotline.
ERIC KUMBIER: We're talking amongst each other and nobody can get through. People are getting hung up on. So it's a mess.
KELEMEN: One option he's exploring is to travel over land to Saudi Arabia to fly out from there. He's gotten visas but is worried about venturing as far as Riyadh with two small children.
KUMBIER: The risk of getting stranded at an airport if things shut down, and in Riyadh instead of here, is a little bit risky. And the school is trying to figure out what its plan is to get people out.
KELEMEN: The State Department says it's offered advice to 6,500 Americans. And the Trump administration has brushed off criticism that it wasn't ready with evacuation plans. Here's how the president explained it.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, because it happened all very quickly.
KELEMEN: But as Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, points out, this war was long in the making.
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CHRIS COONS: The administration took months to assemble a third of our Navy in the region to plan for and prepare for a war with Iran.
KELEMEN: And Coons says the Trump administration could've prepared American civilians for the expected fallout.
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COONS: My office and many others is getting urgent calls from people who are stuck in the region, who are not currently able to get out.
KELEMEN: In between congressional briefings yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended his handling of this.
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MARCO RUBIO: 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.
KELEMEN: The State Department now has an online forum where U.S. citizens can register for evacuation flights. Rubio says the department will be in touch as options open up.
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RUBIO: 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.
KELEMEN: Earlier this week, Iranian drones struck the U.S. embassy in Saudi Arabia, causing a fire and damage. The U.S. consulate in Dubai also came under attack. Rubio has drawn down personnel from much of the region. Embassies in Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia have been closed to the public. In Qatar, diplomats are only responding to emergencies.
Gabriel Morris, who has a YouTube channel called Gabriel Traveler, was in transit in Qatar on his way to India when the war began. He's now made his way to a town on the border between the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
GABRIEL MORRIS: Al Ain is a medium-sized city that is much safer. You know, as it is now, I would feel comfortable, you know, hunkering down here for a while if I needed to.
KELEMEN: He hasn't sought out an evacuation flight yet. He's just hoping that the airport will be open in Oman so he can continue his journey. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, the State Department. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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