Katharine Lackey, USA TODAY 11:18 a.m. EDT August 3, 2013
The alert comes a day after the U.S. issued a global travel warning to Americans about a possible al-Qaeda attack.
Pakistani policemen stand guard outside the central prison after an overnight armed Taliban militant attack in Dera Ismail Khan, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on July 30.(Photo: AFP/Getty Images)
Interpol has issued a global security alert calling for increased vigilance for terrorist activity after suspected al-Qaeda involvement in prison escapes including those in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan.
The international police organization says prison breakouts have occurred in nine Interpol member countries in the past month alone and requests the agency's 190 member countries' assistance to figure out whether such events are linked, the group said in a statement on its website Saturday.
Interpol's alert comes a day after the State Department issued a global travel alert because of an al-Qaeda terrorist threat, saying the potential for terrorism is particularly strong in the Middle East and North Africa. That travel alert goes through Aug. 31.
The U.S. also announced this week that it would close more than a dozen embassies and consulates throughout the Muslim world on Sunday, and possible longer.
The full statement from Interpol's alert reads:
Following a series of prison escapes across nine INTERPOL member countries in the past month alone, including in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan, the INTERPOL General Secretariat headquarters has issued a global security alert advising increased vigilance.
With suspected Al Qaeda involvement in several of the breakouts which led to the escape of hundreds of terrorists and other criminals, the INTERPOL alert requests the Organization's 190 member countries' assistance in order to determine whether any of these recent events are coordinated or linked.
INTERPOL is asking its member countries to closely follow and swiftly process any information linked to these events and the escaped prisoners. They are also requested to alert the relevant member country and INTERPOL General Secretariat headquarters if any escaped terrorist is located or intelligence developed which could help prevent another terrorist attack.
Staff at INTERPOL's 24-hour Command and Coordination Centre and other specialized units are also prioritizing all information and intelligence in relation to the breakouts or terrorist plots in order to immediately inform relevant member countries of any updates.
August is the anniversary of violent terrorist incidents in Mumbai, India and Gluboky, Russia as well as in Jakarta, Indonesia. This week also marks the 15th anniversary of the US Embassy bombings in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in which more than 200 mostly African citizens were killed and 4,000 others injured.
In recent years, terrorist attacks focusing on diplomatic facilities in Afghanistan, Greece, India, Kenya, Libya, Pakistan, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tanzania, Turkey and Yemen have also resulted in hundreds of casualties of all nationalities.
The US State Department has also issued a global travel alert in response to credible intelligence suggesting that Al-Qaeda and affiliated organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks between now and 31 August, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa. In addition to the US authorities announcing the one-day closure of more than 20 diplomatic missions on Sunday 4 August, the UK Foreign Office has also confirmed the closure of the British embassy in Yemen on 4 and 5 August.
Contributing: Natalie DiBlasio, USA TODAY; The Associated Press
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