Americans trying to evacuate Middle East frustrated with government response

As the U.S. Department of State urges Americans to leave 14 countries across the Middle East amid the widening war with Iran, some Americans are voicing frustration with the lack of help from their government.  

Sasha Hoffman, an American who lives in Chicago and was vacationing in Dubai when the U.S.-Israeli military action began, initially thought she would be able to wait out the fighting. But after hearing President Trump say Operation Epic Fury could last four to five weeks, her thinking changed. 

“We’re honestly trapped,” she told CBS News on Tuesday. “It’s really frustrating that right now the U.S. is saying ‘Americans come home’ when in reality we can’t come home. We’ve had flights booked today, tomorrow, all of them are canceled. All of the airspace is closed through tomorrow night, now, if you’re in the UAE.” 

She said she understands the need to prioritize safety, “but then you can’t tell us to get out and create no zone where we can all leave on commercial flights.”

Hoffman also spoke of the fear of being trapped in a war zone, telling CBS News, “It’s terrifying.”

“We’re not used to it in the U.S., where you just hear fighter jets going on all day long, and you certainly don’t hear the missiles actually landing and blowing up … nor smoke plumes,” she said. “These are not things that are normal. I even lived through the Boston Marathon bombing, I lived right above it, and this is so much worse than that.”

Americans were told late Monday to “depart now” from Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. They were urged to leave “using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks.”  

The State Department said Tuesday that more than 9,000 Americans have returned to the U.S. from the Middle East over the past several days, including more than 300 from Israel. More than a million Americans are believed to be in the region, a source told CBS News. 

Travel blogger and influencer Alyssa Ramos, who is stuck in Kuwait, told CBS News on Monday that she is “taking matters into our own hands because the government simply is not helping us and there’s no way to get a hold of anyone.”

The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait said later Tuesday it was closed until further notice “due to ongoing regional tensions” and that consular appointments were canceled. It was closed a day after smoke was seen rising from the mission following Iranian attacks on the country.

Ramos said the airport in Kuwait was struck about two hours after she landed and, while they thought about trying to leave immediately, she said she was told to go to her hotel since the airport would be closing. She also said every flight she’s tried to book out of the country has been canceled. Her other option is to get to Saudi Arabia by land and then get a flight out of Riyadh, Ramos said.

She said hearing the missiles fly overhead is “nerve-wracking” and “terrifying.” 

“We heard the sirens all day, all night. In the middle of the night we hear the explosions in the sky, and of course we see the news of places around us getting struck,” Ramos said. “It’s just really scary. We’re really hoping to get out of here.”

In Israel, American Tamar Rubinstein, pregnant with twins, said she’s taking a bus to Egypt, and then flying through Europe back to her home in Chicago. She said the journey will take her about two and a half days.

“There’s such a lack of clarity,” Rubinstein told CBS News. “So I didn’t want to get to the point where I wouldn’t be clear to travel anymore.”

Nate Bowling, an American teacher who has lived in the United Arab Emirates since 2019, told CBS Philadelphia, “We hear interceptions multiple times a day. There was an alert that went off at like 3 o’clock in the morning, woke us up, and we could hear the interceptions. But we’re safe and well here right now.”   

“There are no flights,” the U.S. Air Force Reserve veteran and former National Teacher of the Year finalist said. “And to be clear about that: The United States began a war. And then, after the war began, told people to evacuate. But there are no flights, and so nobody can get out.”