ns travelling in the Middle East are being warned of potential ‘reprisal attacks’ amidst the escalating conflict between Iran, and Israel and the United States.
The region is on the brink of all-out war following Donald Trump’s decision to drop ‘bunker buster’ bombs on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities on Sunday.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urged the Islamic regime ‘not to take any further action that could destabilise the region’ but the world is bracing itself for Tehran’s response.
In an updated safety advisory published on Monday afternoon, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) warned travellers in the region that the situation ‘could get worse with little warning’.
‘There is a risk of reprisal attacks and further escalation,’ it added.
‘Protests and civil unrest may happen globally. The risk of terrorist attacks can increase, particularly around: areas where foreign tourists gather, embassies (or) other foreign interests.’
The Albanese government shut down the embassy in Tehran last week.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong revealed on Monday over 3,000 ns and their families have registered with the n government seeking to leave Iran.
‘Airspace remains closed. We have deployed people to the Azerbaijani border in the event more ns are able to make it through that border,’ Senator Wong added.
The Prime Minister fronted the media shortly after 11.30am on Monday – more than 24 hours after the US unleashed a series of ‘bunker bombs’ on three of Iran’s nuclear sites.
But after a short statement and a terse back-and-forth with reporters, the Prime Minister brought the press conference to an abrupt end after just nine minutes.
It came after a government spokesperson failed to endorse the US attack on Sunday, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong eventually stating on Monday that the government backed Trump’s call.
The Prime Minister was asked why it had taken so long to give his backing to the move by ‘s top security ally against the Islamic Republic’s nuclear capabilities.
‘We aren’t a central player in this conflict, that’s just a fact,’ he responded.
‘What we do is we run an orderly, stable government. But I made comments about this in three countries over recent days. My comments today are perfectly consistent with that.’
Albanese was repeatedly asked whether was told of the strikes or whether it had given any assistance – military or otherwise – to the US but gave the same response each time.
‘This was a unilateral action taken by the United States,’ he insisted.
n facilities – such as the Pine Gap signals intelligence base near Alice Springs, and the Harold Holt naval communication station in ‘s north-west – often provide assistance to US military operations.
Daily Mail approached the Pentagon for comment.