The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on Sunday issued a security alert due to heightened tensions in Iraq, advising American citizens not to travel to Iraq, avoid places known as U.S. citizen gathering points, keep a low a profile and be aware of their surroundings.
Context: Earlier this month, Israel gave the White House information on an alleged Iranian plot to attack U.S. interests in the Gulf, prompting national security adviser John Bolton to announce that the U.S. would deploy a carrier strike group and a bomber task force to the region to send "a clear and unmistakable message." Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made an abrupt trip to Baghdad last week, which he explained was meant to reaffirm U.S. support for "a sovereign, independent" Iraq, free from the interference of neighboring Tehran.
The former chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, warned White House officials last week that there could soon be a violent escalation in the West Bank, and he recommended that the Trump administration take this into account as part of its calculations for the upcoming release of its peace plan.
Why it matters: Eizenkot, who was the IDF's chief of staff until just 4 months ago, is highly respected by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, most of his Cabinet ministers and the Israeli public.
Nigel Farage's newly formed Brexit Party is on pace to receive more votes than the U.K.'s two mainstream parties combined in this month's European elections, according to a new Opinium/Observer poll.
Why it matters: The U.K. was scheduled to leave the European Union on March 29 at midnight, but Prime Minister Theresa May's failure to get a deal passed in the House of Commons forced her into asking the EU for an extension. With that has come the requirement that the U.K. participate in the European Parliament elections on May 23-26. With 90% of Brits viewing the botched negotiations as "a national humiliation," many voters consider the elections a chance to rebuke the mainstream Conservative and Labour parties.
The U.S. is deploying the USS Arlington, an amphibious transport ship, and a Patriot air defense system to U.S. Central Command in the Middle East, the Defense Department announced on Friday.
What to watch: This decision is partially based on U.S. intelligence that says Iran has green-lit some proxy forces to "go after American military personnel and assets in the region," 3 U.S. officials told NBC. An anonymous defense official told the AP the same thing last Monday, saying Iran and its proxy forces were preparing to possibly attack U.S. forces in the region.
