The Japanese government said Friday staff at its embassy in Iraq will leave the same day, Kyodo News reported.
The embassy has been urging Japanese nationals in Iraq to evacuate since Feb. 14, when the government issued a travel advisory in which it called on them to leave the country immediately, the news agency said.
At least two Japanese diplomats from the Japanese Embassy in Jordan are stationed at the embassy in Baghdad by rotation, according to Kyodo.
The Japanese government has made efforts to evacuate Japanese nationals belonging to citizens' groups who have expressed an intention to remain in Iraq to act as "human shields", Kyodo said.
He suggested the government will continue efforts to evacuate those who have not yet agreed to leave.
The government's decision to evacuate the embassy came hours before UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix was to present his latest report to the UN Security Council.
The security council is expected to debate after the submissionof the report whether to adopt a new draft resolution presented bythe United States, Britain and Spain, Kyodo added.