U.S. Orders Diplomats Out of Kuwait, Syria, Israel

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department said on Sunday it had ordered non-essential diplomats and all embassy dependents out of Kuwait, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Damascus because of the threat of a possible war with Iraq.
"The decision to move to ordered departure status is a result of an overall assessment of the security situation in the region due to the threat of military action in Iraq," the State Department said in statements announcing the decisions.