William Hague: British citizens should leave Yemen 'without delay'

British citizens should leave Yemen "without delay", the foreign secretary, William Hague, told the House of Commons today as he warned that the security situation in the country is deteriorating rapidly. On the eve of a day of marches in Sana'a on Friday, the foreign secretary warned that the British government could not guarantee a place for every British citizen if contingency plans for a military evacuation are put into effect. Hague told MPs: "Commercial flights to and from Yemen are still operating, although this could clearly change. Should there be further violence in Yemen normal means of leaving, particularly through the commercial airport in Sana'a, could be blocked, and the ability to travel around Yemen will be severely restricted. "On 12 March we advised all British nationals to leave Yemen as soon as they could. Since the situation has continued to deteriorate since then, I want to make absolutely clear today that all British nationals remaining in Yemen should leave without delay." The government has reduced the British embassy in Sana'a to a core team after mounting violence in Yemen. A state of emergency has been declared by the government and more than 50 protestors died in Sana'a last Friday. The deteriorating conditions in the country mean that the British ambassador, who is remaining in the country for the time being, and a small consular team cannot reach many parts of Yemen. British diplomats, who have been attacked twice in the past year, can only visit certain parts of the capital. Amid this background, Britain has drawn up contingency plans for a limited military evacuation. Hague said: "There are very detailed contingency plans at very short notice to go into operation for the evacuation of those British nationals that remain. But that would have to be – if we have to trigger that – a military only evacuation possibly in very difficult circumstances. "It would be difficult to be assured that we would be able to bring everyone out from remote parts of Yemen. That is the importance of stressing now that British nationals should leave. There are reports that oil companies are withdrawing their staff from Yemen. I really do want to emphasise that we will give every assistance we can. We have contingency plans ready to go at any time. But that does not guarantee that we could get everyone out." Hague's warning – and the contingency plans – shows that the government does not want to be accused of a delay in evacuating British citizens as it was at the start of the Libya crisis.