U.S. evacuates diplomats, shuts down some embassies as war enters fourth day

Special Series Middle East conflict Conflict in the Middle East has been escalating. These stories provide context for current developments and the history that led up to them. This comes after an Iranian attack on the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait on Monday. Iran has been striking Gulf countries like the United Arab Emirates that are normally considered safe in retaliation to U.S. attacks that started Saturday.Iran has also hit commercial targets after warning that it would attack American interests across the region. The Israeli military said Tuesday it targeted what it called Hezbollah command centers and weapons storage facilities in Beirut's southern suburbs. "Let me be clear: this is not a ground maneuver into Lebanon. It is a tactical step to create an additional layer of security for the residents of northern Israel," said Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani describing the Israeli troop movements. Thousands of Lebanese streamed out of Dahya, the suburb where Hezbollah, a political party as well as paramilitary group designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and some other Western countries, is based. They joined what the government says are at least 30,000 Lebanese fleeing Israeli strikes in south Lebanon and in Beirut. Shelters were so over-crowded some families resorted to laying out blankets on sidewalks of the corniche, Beirut's sea-side. There were no immediate reports of what had been hit. The Israeli authorities also said that they are now focusing on targeting Iran's missiles and launchers. Iranian missile strikes on Israel have significantly decreased. Israel says Iran may be rationing munitions gearing up for a long war. An official in the region who spoke on condition of anonymity tells NPR Israel thinks it can achieve its war goals in two weeks total. Israeli officials say they want to create the conditions for Iranians to topple their government. Many of the bodies had been buried under rubble.The U.S. "The Strait of Hormuz is closed. Anyone who wants to pass, our devotee heroes in the IRGC navy and the army will set those ships on fire," security official Brig. Gen. Ebrahim Jabbari, said Monday. "Don't come to this region." In a sign of the vast repercussions of the war, Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told an Iranian envoy that Iran must reopen the waterway. In addition to the effect of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz on oil supplies, about 20% of the world's liquified natural gas, or LNG, is shipped through the Strait. On land, Iranian strikes hit Ras Laffan, the world's largest LNG export plant in Qatar. State-owned QatarEnergy says it has shut down LNG production. Many countries are somewhat insulated from the disruptions in oil flows because they have oil in strategic reserves. But natural gas is a different story, says Anne-Sophie Corbeau, a global research scholar at the Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy. Gas storage levels are particularly low because it's the end of winter. " This is absolutely massive," Corbeau says. "It's going to impact everybody who is importing LNG." Oil prices have risen since trading opened Monday, and so have natural gas prices in Asia and Europe. Energy experts say that higher gas prices and reduced LNG flows out of the Persian Gulf is highly profitable for LNG exporters elsewhere, including in Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia and the U.S. The U.S. is the biggest exporter of LNG and is set to open a new LNG terminal in Texas soon. Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor