Interpol in al-Qaida security alert
Print Edition
Interpol yesterday issued a global security alert after jailbreaks linked to al-Qaida freed hundreds of militants, as the United States and other Western powers planned to temporarily close certain embassies over terror threats.
Washington ordered its embassies across the Islamic world temporarily closed, while Germany, Britain and France were to shut their missions in Yemen for at least two days.
Interpol said it suspected al-Qaida was involved in recent jailbreaks across nine countries. These included Iraq, Libya and Pakistan.
The global police agency said the jailbreaks “led to the escape of hundreds of terrorists and other criminals” in the past month alone and issued a security alert.
It has also asked its 190 member countries to help “determine whether any of these recent events are coordinated and linked” and to immediately convey any intelligence which could help prevent another attack.
The Interpol alert comes the day after Washington’s worldwide travel warning, citing unspecified plans by al-Qaida to strike US interests in the Middle East or North Africa this month.
Interpol, based in Lyon in central eastern France, noted that August is the anniversary of attacks in India, Russia and Indonesia.
This week also marks the 15th anniversary of the US embassy bombings in the Kenyan capital Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania that killed more than 200 people and injured thousands.
United States Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Martin Dempsey told ABC News that the threats were directed at Western interests, and were “more specific” than previous threats.
While an exact target was unknown, “the intent seems clear. The intent is to attack Western, not just US, interests,” Dempsey said in an interview for the program “This Week.”
As a precaution, the State Department said it was closing at least 22 US embassies or consulates today.
Germany and Britain later announced that their embassies in Yemen would be closed today and tomorrow, while France said its mission there would shut for “several days.”
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