On January 30, the Department of State authorized the voluntary departure of dependents and non-emergency employees from the US Embassy in Egypt.
The announcement also calls on U.S. citizens currently in Egypt to "consider leaving as soon as they can safely do so. Cairo airport is open and operating, but flights may be disrupted and transport to the airport may be disrupted due to the protests." Also:
In the event of demonstrations, U.S. citizens in Egypt should remain in their residences or hotels until the situation stabilizes. Security forces may block off the area around the U.S. Embassy during demonstrations, and U.S. citizens should not attempt to come to the U.S. Embassy or the Tahrir Square area at such times. The U. S. Embassy is open for emergency services for U.S. citizens only until further notice. As always, any change to Embassy hours will be posted on the Embassy website. U.S. citizens in Egypt who require assistance, or those who are concerned that their U.S. citizen loved one in Egypt may require assistance, should contact the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Cairo at EgyptEmergencyUSC@state.gov, or at 1-202-501-4444.
Read the new travel warning here.
We don't know the exact numbers of dependents and employees considered non-emergency/non-essential personnel at the embassy. But APP Alexandria has one officer and 49 local staff. Embassy Cairo has approximately 476 direct hire staff, and 1,349 locally employed staff. Add to that the private amcits and the logistics are quite daunting.
In related news --
The ground floor of the New Zealand embassy building was reportedly damaged by demonstrators in Cairo but will open on Monday.
An Azerbaijani embassy worker was also shot dead in Egypt yesterday. Nijat Gojayev, the embassy accountant, was fatally wounded when he was returning home from work in Cairo, ministry spokesman Elkhan Polukhov said in an interview with Bloomberg.
Related item:
Post Evacuation Links for Employees and Family Members
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