US and UK tell citizens in Qatar to shelter in place

The United States and the United Kingdom have told its citizens in Qatar to shelter “until further notice”.

The United States Embassy in Qatar suggested in an online opinion that the Americans do it “by abundance of caution”. The British government said it was warn In response to the American alert.

Warnings come after the State Department said to American citizens in international places to “show increased caution”, after the United States bombed three nuclear sites in Iran on Saturday. Iran has threatened to retaliate.

In a statement, the Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that a number of countries urged precautions, but the advice of the embassy “did not necessarily reflect the existence of specific threats”.

“The security situation in the country is stable,” said the press release, adding that “the competent authorities closely monitor the situation and are ready to take all the necessary measures to ensure the security of citizens, residents and visitors”.

Qatar is home to the largest American military base in the Middle East, the Al Udeid air base. According to the State Department, around 8,000 American citizens live there.

The United States has around 40,000 soldiers stationed in the Middle East.

The message from the United States Embassy was followed by warnings from other Qatar groups, including several universities that have asked students to return home.

Bilateral relations between the United States and Qatar are “strong”, according to the State Department, which says that Qatar has contributed to playing a financial, political and military role in the treatment of disorders in the region.