US and UK pulling some personnel from Qatar military base

The US embassy in Doha has advised its personnel to exercise increased caution and limit non-essential travel to the Al-Udeid air base.

Iran closed its airspace from 02:45 local time (22:15 GMT) on Thursday to almost all flights, according to the US Federal Aviation Administration’s website.

The closure was initially due to last two hours, but was later extended to 08:00 local time (03:30 GMT), according to the Reuters news agency.

Several airlines have announced they will reroute flights around Iran in response, including Air India and Germany’s Lufthansa.

Air India warned that passengers could experience delays or cancellations as flights through the region were rerouted. Lufthansa issued a statement confirming its flights would avoid Iranian and Iraqi airspace “until further notice”.

According to rights groups, more than 2,400 anti-government demonstrators have been killed in the recent violent crackdown by the Iranian authorities.

Regarding the removal of military personnel, the Qatari government said it would continue to “implement all necessary measures to safeguard the security and safety of its citizens and residents as a top priority, including actions related to the protection of critical infrastructure and military facilities”.

A UK Ministry of Defence spokesperson declined to comment on reports that UK personnel were being withdrawn “due to operational security”.

Al-Udeid is the largest US military base in the Middle East and about 10,000 personnel are based there, as well as about 100 UK staff. It is not clear how many will be leaving.

Earlier this week, Trump warned the US would take “very strong action” against Iran if the authorities execute protesters. Iran has said it will retaliate if attacked by the US.

On Wednesday, he said his administration had been told “on good authority” that “the killing in Iran is stopping, and there’s no plan for executions”.

When questioned by a reporter, Trump said that these were “very important sources on the other side” and that he hoped the reports were true.

The US president was also asked whether military action was now off the table, to which he replied: “We’re going to watch and see what the process is.”