France has issued a travel advisory today, urging its citizens “imperatively” to refrain from traveling to Iran – as well as nearby Lebanon, Israel, and the Palestinian territories.

The warning comes amid Tehran's threats of retaliation, after a widely-believed Israeli attack on Iranian consulate premises in Damascus on April 1, which killed seven Islamic Revolutionary Guards Commanders.

French Foreign Minister, Stephane Sejourne, has meanwhile called for the evacuation of the family members of French diplomats in Iran – and for no French civil servants to be deployed to any of the listed countries.

Britain, Canada, and Australia have also issued travel advisories urging their citizens to refrain from visiting Iran, Israel, the West Bank, and Lebanon.

This week, German airline Lufthansa extended its suspension of its flights to Tehran due to the situation in the Middle East.

The conflict ignited by Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7 has intensified regional volatility to levels not seen in years – and has brought the shadow war between Iran and Israel to the forefront today.