U.S. issues security alert on Iraq amid regional tensions

BAGHDAD -- The U.S. Embassy in Iraq is advising U.S. citizens against travelling to the country amid what it called "heightened tensions," reflecting worsening strains between Washington and Tehran. The advisory was posted on Twitter on Sunday night. The U.S. has long advised its citizens against travel to Iraq, but the renewed warning followed Washington's deployment of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and B-52 bombers to the Persian Gulf in response to unspecified "threats" by Iran. Th