U.S. issues travel alert for Europe amidst fears of Al Qaeda attack

October 4, 2010

The United States has issued a  for Europe, based on information suggesting an imminent Al-Qaeda attack. The advisory urges all Americans in Europe to be aware of their surroundings and take adequate safety precautions when travelling. They stated that they are working closely with European governments to prevent attacks from Al-Qaeda.

According to, the Undersecretary of State for Management Patrick Kennedy stated, "the advisory is not meant to tell Americans to avoid travel, but to take 'common-sense precautions' in case of trouble." The Undersecretary went on to say, "If they see unattended packages or hear loud noises or see something beginning to happen that they should quickly move away from them." Kennedy pointed out that the warning states individuals should be careful when in public places or riding in public transportation and they should know how to contact the US.

Kennedy said he could not recall the last time a travel alert was issued for an entire continent due to security reasons. Earlier this week officials were looking at intelligence which hinted at the possibility of Mumbai-style attacks across European cities. The Mumbai attacks took place in November 2008 when armed militants stormed two prominent hotels, a historic train station and a Jewish cultural center.

A former State Department counter-terrorism expert told CNN, "The State Department is historically extremely cautious about these things." He stated they do not want to be blamed for not warning Americans if they have information about possible attacks, but the alert is less severe than more formal travel warnings issued for previous threats.

The  have reported the intelligence warning of the attack came from the interrogation of a German-Pakistani man who is being held at a US base in Afghanistan. All across Europe the governments have been alerting the public of the possibility of imminent attacks.