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Navy Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman at the U.S. militarys Central Command, said there were "possibly imminent threats to U.S. forces in Iraq." USA TODAY

The U.S. military put its forces in Iraq on highalert, andthe State Departmentordered all nonemergencyemployees Wednesday to leave the country immediately amid escalating tensions with Iran. SomeU.S. allies have expressedskepticism about the Trump administrations claims that Iran poses a growing threat.

Navy Capt.Bill Urban, a spokesman at the U.S. militarys Central Command, said in a statementthat there were "possibly imminent threats to U.S. forces in Iraq" as he sought to clarify contradictory remarks by a British commander Tuesday.

British Maj. Gen. Christopher Ghika, a senior officer in the U.S.-backed coalition fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, said, "Theres been no increased threat from Iranian-backed forces in Iraq and Syria." Urban rebutted Ghika's remarks in a sign of how the United Statesand its closeallies have split over Iran's potential threat.

Applying "maximum pressure" on Iran is a central tenet of the Trump administration's foreign policy. Trump withdrewthe United Statesfrom a nuclear deal reached between Iran and world powers in 2015, reimposed crushing sanctions and boosted the U.S. military presence in the Persian Gulf. Unease that Washington and Tehran could be headed toward military confrontation has mounted.

Iran to Trump: You areplaying 'very dangerous game,' risking 'devastating war'

In Baghdad, the U.S. Embassy published a statement Wednesday sayingthe State Department mandated thatall nonemergency government staff leave the country after Washington said last week it detected urgent "credible" threats from Iran and its proxy forces in the region targeting Americans and U.S. interests.

Specific details about the intelligence havenot been revealed.

Saudi Arabia said this week that two of its oil tankers and other energy-related infrastructure were damaged in an act of "sabotage" in theGulf. Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who are fighting a war with Saudi Arabia, claimed responsibility for drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities Tuesday.

Federica Mogherini, Europe'stop foreign affairs diplomat, called for theUnited Statesto show"maximum restraint" after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Mixed messages: Varied points of view from Trump onIran

When the UnitedStatespulled out of the nuclear deal in May last year, the other signatories to the accord Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the European Union vowed to stay in and establish a financial mechanism that would allow them to keep trade and other ties with Iran open amid the U.S. sanctions. They have struggled to achieve that. As a result, Iran gave European countries 60 daysto find a way of salvaging the agreementor it would start enriching uranium to far higher levels.

If nothing happens when the 60 days are up, "there will be consequences from our side," Hamid Baeidinejad, Irans ambassador to the United Kingdom, told USA TODAY and other media outlets during a briefing in Iran's Embassy in London on Tuesday.

Successive U.S. administrations have viewed Iran as a regional troublemaker and described it as the "largest state sponsor of terrorism." Tehranaids a number of Shiitemilitant groups in Iraq, Lebanon, Syriaand elsewhere across the Middle East. The Trump administration pulled out of the nuclear deal in part because of that and also because the deal does not address Iran's ballistic missile activity.

The United States and Iran have been lobbing threats, fighting proxy wars, and imposing sanctions for decades. USA Today looks at over 60 years of this back-and-forth. Just the FAQs, USA TODAY

Iran or its proxies, such as Hezbollah, Hamas and the Taliban, havecarried out bombings, abductions and hijackings against the USAand other Western nations.

"Iran is certain to continue to pursue its regional strategy,unless and until its adversaries are willing or able to blunt Irans efforts," the authors of a new report bythe Soufan Center, a global security research center, wrote."Rolling back Tehrans regional influence will require an equally nimble approach combining diplomacy, smart counter-terrorism policy, and a nuanced understanding of how and why Irans soft power efforts have been successful so they may be effectively countered."

New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said lawmakers needed an immediate briefing from Trump administration officials on the alleged threats from Iran. He said there are only two reasons for the State Departmentto order the departure of U.S. Embassy staff from Baghdad: credible intelligence Americans are at riskor preparation for military action.

"The Trump administration has not provided any information to this committee on the intelligence behind their decisions or what they plan to do in Iraq or Iran," he said.

War plan?: Trump dismisses report of plan to send troops to Middle East

A U.S. Patriot missile defense system is stationed at the Israeli air force base in Hatzor.(Photo: ATEF SAFADI, EPA-EFE)

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Contributing: Deirdre Shesgreen

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