The United States has advised its citizens to leave southeast Turkey and ordered non-essential staff and their families to evacuate the US Consulate in Adana, near a key NATO base, amid escalating regional tensions, the US Embassy in Ankara announced on Monday.
The advisory comes as Iran continues retaliatory missile and drone strikes across the Middle East following US-Israeli attacks that began on February 28. While Turkey has so far avoided direct hits, several US military facilities, including the strategic Incirlik Air Base—an important NATO hub located just 10 kilometers (6 miles) from Adana—are in proximity to potential threats.
“On March 9, 2026, the Department of State ordered non-emergency US government employees and their family members to leave Consulate General Adana due to safety risks,” the embassy said on X, referencing a State Department travel advisory that strongly encouraged Americans in southeast Turkey to depart immediately.
The heightened alert follows a ballistic missile launch from Iran toward Turkey on Wednesday, which NATO forces intercepted, prompting a stern warning from Ankara. NATO has since reinforced its ballistic missile defense posture in response to the ongoing Iranian strikes across the region.
Turkey’s Defence Ministry confirmed that NATO systems successfully detected and neutralized the missile but provided no further operational details.
Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles stated that the missile was tracked by Spanish troops operating a Patriot missile battery at Incirlik Air Base, though they were not responsible for shooting it down.
The US travel advisory underscores increasing concerns for American citizens in southeastern Turkey as tensions in the region continue to escalate.
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