Possible terror threat closes U.S. embassies on Sunday

[News_Editor]

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) -- An unspecified number of U.S. embassies and consulates around the globe, but the vast majority of them believed to be in the Middle East, will be closed Sunday due to security concerns, U.S. officials confirmed on Thursday amid reports that a terrorist attack may be imminent.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said the department instructed "certain" U.S. embassies and consulates to remain closed or to suspend operations on Sunday. "The Department has been apprised of information that, out of an abundance of caution and care for our employees and others who may be visiting our installations, that indicates we should institute these precautionary steps," she said.

Harf could not say which and how many embassies and consulates would be closed, but Sunday is a business day in mostly the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. At least thirteen embassies and consulates, almost all of them in the Middle East, had announced their Sunday closure by early Friday morning.

U.S. officials refused to provide specific details about the nature of the security concerns, but unnamed sources told CBS News that U.S. intelligence agencies have picked up signs that al-Qaeda is plotting an attack against U.S. diplomatic posts in the Middle East and other Muslim countries.

CBS News correspondent David Martin said the intelligence does not mention a specific location, which is why a large number of embassies and consulates are being closed. He said, citing unnamed officials, that the intelligence suggests it is "a real plot in the making" and not just chatter among terrorists.

Harf said the security concerns revolve around August 4 specifically, but she indicated that embassies could remain closed for a longer period of time. "It is possible we may have additional days of closure as well," she said. "Depending on our analysis, individual U.S. embassies and consulates will announce whether or not they are open and whether they are implementing restrictions or other measures."

But while U.S. officials were reluctant to discuss specific details, Harf cautioned people from making assumptions before more details have been released. "I would caution people, as I think we always do, from making any assumptions or drawing conclusions before there are more facts available," she said.

U.S. diplomatic posts which announced they would be closed on Sunday include the U.S. embassies in the Jordanian capital of Amman, the Egyptian capital of Cairo, Kuwait, the Libyan capital of Tripoli, the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, the Qatari capital of Doha, the Emirati capital of Abu Dhabi, the Yemeni capital of Sana'a, and the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka.

Also closed will be the U.S. Consulate-General in the Iraqi city of Barah, the U.S. Consulate-General in the Iraqi city of Erbil, and the U.S. Consulate-General in the Emirati city of Dubai. The embassy's American Center in Dhaka, which houses the Foreign Agriculture Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Archer K. Blood Library, will also be closed.

"The Department, when conditions warrant, takes steps like this to balance our continued operations with security and safety," the U.S. State Department said in an emergency message. "However, beyond this announcement we do not discuss specific threat information, security considerations or measures, or other steps we may be taking."

The Obama administration has endured a storm of criticism over the past year for its handling of the September 11 attack on the U.S. consulate in the Libyan port city of Benghazi. The attack resulted in the deaths of four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador John Christopher Stevens.

(Copyright 2013 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: [email protected].)

[theblether]

Seems weird that they are so day specific, especially a Sunday. It's almost as if they are inviting the attack a day earlier or later.

I suppose though they need to keep people away from the buildings on those days, hence the announcement.

[Credo]

If the terrorist change the day, then they have to call everyone, or send them an email or communicate in some way about the change of plan. There is a good chance that those channels are being monitored, so it's a case of either go ahead with it or abort it.

They are going to have to resort to carrier pigeon to go undetected.

[dudu]

Sunday is always a good day for a bombing on something that is closed and usually empty!

[Chicog]

^ And therefore less security.

Added: The list of embassies above are mostly open on Sunday since they're in Muslim countries.

Edited August 2, 2013 by Chicog

[Suradit69]

Sunday is always a good day for a bombing on something that is closed and usually empty!

In much of the Middle East, the working week is from Sunday to Thursday.

Edited August 2, 2013 by Suradit69

[MobileContent]

They left out Saudi Arabia but maybe they are not open on Sunday.

[Publicus]

They left out Saudi Arabia but maybe they are not open on Sunday.

CBS News in the U.S. which broke the story says the embassy and offices in Saudi Arabia will be closed Sunday.

[MobileContent]

They left out Saudi Arabia but maybe they are not open on Sunday.

CBS News in the U.S. which broke the story says the embassy and offices in Saudi Arabia will be closed Sunday.

Saudi Arabia must be on the high priority list.

[Emdog]

Saudi Arabia is big threat to USA, but we kiss their asses because of oil. How about just closing permanently?

[Publicus]

Saudi Arabia is big threat to USA, but we kiss their asses because of oil. How about just closing permanently?

Realpolitik.

The Saudis have caused a lot of trouble - and embarrassment - for the U.S. but stand firmly against Iran. The enemy of my enemy is my friend.

Saudi Arabia stands with the Gulf states which are reliable U.S. allies. The Saudis have been helpful too, overtly and covertly. Further, as did Mubarak in Egypt for 30 years, the Saudis go after al Qaeda and other Islamist revolutionaries with a meat axe. The Saudis were greatly embarrassed and uncomfortable about the 9/11 hijackers but have more than made up for it.

If the U.S. tried to change the government in Saudi Arabia it would catch holy hell for that too. Ten years ago the Myanmar exiles in the U.S. were pounding the table for the U.S. to invade Myanmar to replace the military dictatorship there too.

The U.S. 99% of the time deals with the governments that exist. The U.S. got involved in Lybia with France in the lead and Nato doing the action. Washington has found a thousand ways to stay out of Syria, recently becoming only slightly involved.

Prez Obama's foreign policy prominently includes a blending of Wilsonian internationalism and Eisenhower's let it be, let it happen on its own philosophy. Ike for instance did nothing while the British Empire inexorably disappeared. Ike made peace in Korea and always turned to the UN as the place to go, the approach to take.

Bush and Powell lied to the UN about WMD in Iraq.

[Scott]

Posted Yesterday, 23:21

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) -- Al-Qaeda and affiliated organizations are plotting to carry out terrorist attacks in the coming weeks, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, the U.S. government warned Friday as it issued a worldwide travel alert for U.S. citizens abroad and instructed embassies to close on Sunday.

The U.S. State Department said the threat focuses particularly on the Middle East and North Africa, and may be emanating from the Arabian Peninsula. "Current information suggests that al-Qaeda and affiliated organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks both in the region and beyond, and that they may focus efforts to conduct attacks in the period between now and the end of August," it said.

The department issued a Worldwide Travel Alert to caution U.S. citizens abroad about the terror plot, urging them to take every precaution to be aware of their surroundings and to adopt appropriate safety measures to protect themselves while traveling. It said terrorists may elect to use "a variety of means and weapons" to target both official and private interests, including public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure.

"We continue to work closely with other nations on the threat from international terrorism, including from al-Qaeda," the State Department said in the unusual Travel Alert, which expires on August 31. "Information is routinely shared between the U.S. and our key partners in order to disrupt terrorist plotting, identify and take action against potential operatives, and strengthen our defenses against potential threats."

On late Thursday, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said the department had instructed U.S. embassies and consulates to remain closed or to suspend operations on Sunday due to security concerns. "The Department has been apprised of information that, out of an abundance of caution and care for our employees and others who may be visiting our installations, that indicates we should institute these precautionary steps," she said.

Harf could not say which and how many embassies and consulates would be closed, but Sunday is a business day in mostly the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. At least fourteen embassies and consulates, almost all of them in the Middle East, had announced their Sunday closure by Friday afternoon.

U.S. Representative Ed Royce, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview with CNN on Friday morning that lawmakers met with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday to discuss the terror threat. "When we do have an indication of a threat, we take that seriously, if we have an indication of when that threat will manifest itself," he said.

Royce, who spoke before the U.S. government issued its travel alert to provide more details about the threat, said the embassy closures were ordered to protect American personnel. "It's my understanding that it is al-Qaeda linked," he told CNN. "And the threat emanates in the Middle East and in Central Asia."

Earlier, unnamed sources told CBS News that U.S. intelligence agencies have picked up signs that al-Qaeda is plotting an attack against U.S. diplomatic posts in the Middle East or other Muslim countries. But CNN, quoting an unidentified U.S. official, said the threat targets "American targets overseas" and may not be confined to diplomatic facilities.

CBS News correspondent David Martin said the intelligence did not mention a specific location, which is why a large number of embassies and consulates were ordered to close. He said, citing unnamed officials, that the intelligence suggests it is "a real plot in the making" and not just chatter among terrorists.

Harf said the security concerns revolve around August 4 specifically, but she indicated that embassies could remain closed for a longer period of time. "It is possible we may have additional days of closure as well," she said. "Depending on our analysis, individual U.S. embassies and consulates will announce whether or not they are open and whether they are implementing restrictions or other measures."

U.S. diplomatic posts which announced they would be closed on Sunday include the U.S. embassies in the Jordanian capital of Amman, the Egyptian capital of Cairo, Kuwait, the Libyan capital of Tripoli, the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, the Qatari capital of Doha, the Emirati capital of Abu Dhabi, the Yemeni capital of Sana'a, the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, and the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka.

Also closed will be the U.S. Consulate-General in the Iraqi city of Barah, the U.S. Consulate-General in the Iraqi city of Erbil, and the U.S. Consulate-General in the Emirati city of Dubai. The embassy's American Center in Dhaka, which houses the Foreign Agriculture Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Archer K. Blood Library, will also be closed.

The Obama administration has endured a storm of criticism over the past year for its handling of the September 11 attack on the U.S. consulate in the Libyan port city of Benghazi. The attack resulted in the deaths of four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador John Christopher Stevens.

(Copyright 2013 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: [email protected].)

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/658116-update-1-us-issues-worldwide-travel-alert-due-to-al-qaeda-terror-threat/

[Scott]

Another link in the world news:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/658109-us-says-al-qaeda-plotting-august-terror-attack-issues-worldwide-travel-alert/

[Publicus]

U.S. issues global travel alert, to close embassies due to al Qaeda threat

http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/02/politics/us-embassies-close/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

According to three sources, the United States has information that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula members are in the final stages of planning for an unspecified attack.

One of the sources said that such preparations appeared to have increased in recent days with the approaching end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In particular, Sunday is Laylet al-Qadr, or the Night of Power, which is one of the holiest moments on the Muslim calendar.

Said one U.S. official: "It all leads us to believe something could happen in the near future."

Based on intelligence, U.S. officials said, there was particular concern about the U.S. Embassy in Yemen between Saturday and Tuesday

Retired Gen. James Mattis -- who until earlier this year was head of U.S. Central Command, responsible for a 20-country area that includes the Middle East -- said the decision to close the embassies shows the reality of the threat and the wisdom of U.S. policymakers.

U.S. embassies have been targeted before in places such as Yemen, Turkey and Tanzania, he pointed out. Moreover, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is one of the terrorist network's most active and most destructive branches.

"We have to remember that we're up against an enemy who kills indiscriminately -- whether it be women, children, diplomats -- and our embassies ... have been one of the targets," Mattis told CNN on Friday. "We are showing some proactive discretion here, making certain that we don't give the enemy an opportunity that we can deny them."

[Ulysses G.]

I don't see how closing for one day will prevent anything. Terrorists are smart enough to just wait an extra day to do whatever they are going to do.

[Scott]

Off-topic posts and replies deleted.

[stoli]

I don't see how closing for one day will prevent anything. Terrorists are smart enough to just wait an extra day to do whatever they are going to do.

Actually, disrupting anyone's well laid out plans creates a huge mess. Are you able to communicate to everyone not to move ahead, to wait for further information, to develop your back-up plan, to train everyone again on what they are supposed to do, all the while being monitored by those that are watching you? I applaud the warning by the US. I look for this info from them. Well done.

[chiangmaisurprise]

Let me rephrase:

Sounds like another terrorism scare tactic to me. Why make public exact days and locations? Seems like there's a different agenda here.

[atyclb]

Assuming the terror threat is real, notifying the public is a courtesy to the alleged terrorists and they can re-schedule their event for a day the embassies are open.

Interesting in that US politicians have said terrorists attack and hate the US because they are free. Then why wouldn't the alleged terrorists attack societies that are freer like Sweden, Denmark, etc. ????

[Publicus]

Let me rephrase:

Sounds like another terrorism scare tactic to me. Why make public exact days and locations? Seems like there's a different agenda here.

National security officials said the information is real, not just chatter.

The Muslim month of holy fasting ends this weekend with a big prayer bang on Sunday.

The process of association - connecting the dots - and deduction is a valid one. Deductive reasoning and logic don't always turn out right, but it's a proven method of success over a long period of time now.

Vacuous cynicism for the sake of cynicism may prove you right, but I tend to doubt that would be the case. There's real evidence here.

[Publicus]

Assuming the terror threat is real, notifying the public is a courtesy to the alleged terrorists and they can re-schedule their event for a day the embassies are open.

Interesting in that US politicians have said terrorists attack and hate the US because they are free. Then why wouldn't the alleged terrorists attack societies that are freer like Sweden, Denmark, etc. ????

There have been Muslim attacks in Denmark.

Saying Sweden and Denmark are more free countries than the United States is a subjective claim that is open to dispute or debate.

Haven't you heard a thousand times over, the United States is the terrorists' Great Satan?

That's a standard Sweden and Denmark don't and can't possibly meet, happily for them, although as I'd stated, there have been Muslim attacks in Denmark. Remember the Danish newspaper cartoons? There have been other Muslim religiously motivated attacks in Denmark.

One simply has to be paying at least some attention to these things in order to speak accurately.

[chuckd]

The big protest in Saudi Arabia during the Danish cartoon uprising was that most grocery chains stopped selling Danish cheese for a few weeks.

Having lived in the middle East for quite a few years I have seen many of these notices from the Embassies.

They are usually generic in nature and normally would not specify any particular date unless they have specific information that something is planned. Sunday is a normal work day in Saudi.

Most of us never got excited about these notices. We knew we were under threat all the time anyway.

[SinglePot]

Sounds like that XKeystonecop thingamajig is working well.

[indyuk]

Saudi Arabia is big threat to USA, but we kiss their asses because of oil. How about just closing permanently?

Trouble is that the USA needs Saudi crude for refineries that are designed to crack their particular crude formular of Sadi crude

Otherwise good idea close as many embassies in the Mid East as possible.

The Terrorists can not terrorise you if you are not there. Just sayin' folks

Edited August 3, 2013 by indyuk

[Publicus]

Saudi Arabia is big threat to USA, but we kiss their asses because of oil. How about just closing permanently?

Trouble is that the USA needs Saudi crude for refineries that are designed to crack their particular crude formular of Sadi crude

Otherwise good idea close as many embassies in the Mid East as possible.

The Terrorists can not terrorise you if you are not there. Just sayin' folks

Running away from the problem only brings it closer to your own doorstep.

I can't believe I read what I read in the post. It would be a surrender. Surrender is not an option unless you wan to live under Sharia Law and see Western civilization disappear. I still can't believe what I read in the post.

The U.S. takes the fight to 'em, creates a front where there wasn't any front.

[SinglePot]

Saudi Arabia is big threat to USA, but we kiss their asses because of oil. How about just closing permanently?

Trouble is that the USA needs Saudi crude for refineries that are designed to crack their particular crude formular of Sadi crude

Otherwise good idea close as many embassies in the Mid East as possible.

The Terrorists can not terrorise you if you are not there. Just sayin' folks

Al Qaeda will carry out acts of terrorism wherever they wish...if they are allowed too.

London, NY, Copenhagen, the Sky...........

[AngelsLariat]

I don't see how closing for one day will prevent anything. Terrorists are smart enough to just wait an extra day to do whatever they are going to do.

I'm not worried, Obama has assured us that Al Qaeda is on the run and that all the world now loves America.

Edited August 3, 2013 by AngelsLariat

[folium]

Interesting in that US politicians have said terrorists attack and hate the US because they are free. Then why wouldn't the alleged terrorists attack societies that are freer like Sweden, Denmark, etc. ????

Like the Stockholm suicide bombing in 2010, or the disrupted terrorist attacks in Copenhagen in 2007 and 2010.....?

[Jingthing]

None of the countries in which the embassies are being closed has objected to the U.S. move because the info behind this drastic step was shared with them. So if that doesn't convince people this is REAL then you might just want to look in mirror and check your anti-U.S. bias.

[Publicus]

I don't see how closing for one day will prevent anything. Terrorists are smart enough to just wait an extra day to do whatever they are going to do.

I'm not worried, Obama has assured us that Al Qaeda is on the run and that all the world now loves America.