The U.S. State Department on Friday authorized the departure of non-emergency government personnel and their family members from Israel, and issued a travel warning for the Jewish state, due to “safety risks.”

The U.S. Embassy Jerusalem website cites the risk that “Increased regional tensions can cause airlines to cancel and/or curtail flights into and out of Israel” as pretext for the authorization.

“Terrorist groups, lone-actor terrorists and other violent extremists continue plotting possible attacks in Israel,” the embassy states.

Terrorists may attack “with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, and local government facilities,” it continues.

The “security environment is complex and can change quickly, and violence can occur … without warning,” the website states.

The New York Times reported that U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee sent an email to his staff at 10:24 a.m. on Friday local time saying that if they want to leave Israel, they “should do so TODAY.”

The warning was issued following a night full of meetings and phone calls between the embassy and the State Department, the report continued.

The embassy’s move “will likely result in high demand for airline seats today,” Huckabee wrote in the email, according to the Times. “Focus on getting a seat to anyplace from which you can then continue travel to D.C., but the first priority will be getting expeditiously out of country,” he added.

Under the section on reconsidering traveling to Israel, the embassy’s website reads that “The security situation in Israel, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem is unpredictable, and U.S. citizens are reminded to remain vigilant and take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness as security incidents, including mortar and rocket fire and armed UAV intrusions and missiles, can take place without warning.”

U.S. government employees are currently restricted from personal travel within seven miles of the Gaza demarcation line and 2.5 miles within the Lebanese and Syrian borders.

Additionally, the U.S. embassy tweeted that it “may further restrict or prohibit government employees and their family members from traveling to certain areas of Israel, the Old City of Jerusalem, and the West Bank.”

The embassy advised those wishing to leave Israel to do so “while commercial flights are available.”

Meanwhile on Friday, Beersheva Mayor Reuven Danilovich instructed the municipality to prepare public shelters as a precautionary measure.

Tzvika Brot, the mayor of the city of Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv, told Channel 12 News: “We are prepared to go from zero to one hundred—meaning to a full emergency situation—within 20 minutes, in all aspects. But at the same time, we are also focused on maintaining calm right now and explaining to the public that, at this stage, we are in full routine.”

He added, “We are constantly maintaining and cleaning the shelters even though they are closed. We are not opening them—only if necessary—and we are investing heavily in public communication to make clear that we will get through this at a high level, with professionalism and calm. There is no need to panic.”

Moreover, hospitals throughout Israel have concluded preparations to transfer to emergency mode, which involves operating in underground and sheltered facilities.

No special instructions have been issued to civilians by the Israel Defense Forces Home Front Command as of Friday afternoon.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have reached seething levels, with the latest round of talks in Geneva to reach a nuclear agreement reportedly failing to bridge the wide gaps between the sides.

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