THE US has warned its citizens to flee the Middle East now after Donald Trump vowed to hit Iran “very hard”.

Tehran has issued more threats to Gulf countries hosting American military bases as the war continues to spiral back out of control.

The US State Department’s warning covers 10 countries in the region: the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Israel, Oman, Qatar, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Egypt.

Americans have been told to “exercise heightened vigilance” and “be prepared to depart should there be escalation”.

They have also been warned about “flight cancellations, periodic airspace closures, and potential travel disruptions”.

The alert continued: “The Iranian regime is unpredictable, as seen by its recent decisions to attack areas in the region without warning or to expand attacks to areas not previously targeted (such as Egypt).”

t comes after sources told CBS News that the US and Israel are gearing up for “one of the harshest bombing campaigns to date” against Iran‘s powergrid.

Trump is yet to give the final go ahead, but insiders suggested that strikescould begin this weekend.

Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said: “The Department of War is locked and loaded, ready to execute the President’s directives at a moment’s notice.”

The US has repeatedly targeted Iran‘s energy infrastructure across the was in a bid to cripple the regime’s ability to prop up its ravaged military.