US تغلق سفارتها اليوم في الخرطوم والسودان يقول انها حتي نهاية الشهر

Quote: Washington: The closure of some US embassies and consulates in predominantly Muslim countries is being extended for one week through August 10, the State Department said. ‘‘This is not an indication of a new threat stream, merely an indication of our commitment to exercise caution and take appropriate steps to protect our employees including local employees and visitors to our facilities,’’ Jen Psaki, a department spokeswoman, said. Interpol said in a statement that it suspects al- Qaeda of involvement in prison breaks in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan. The US had earlier closed 21 embassies and consulates from Egypt and Libya to Yemen and Afghanistan after issuing a worldwide travel warning of potential terror attacks by groups linked to al-Qaeda. "The Department of State has instructed certain US embassies and consulates to remain closed or to suspend operations on Sunday," as a precautionary step, a department spokeswoman, Marie Harf, said last week. Embassies are typically open on Sunday in some predominantly Muslim countries, where it's part of the workweek. Advertisement While US officials didn't disclose specific risks to embassies and other facilities this weekend, the travel advisory issued August 2 described potential terrorist attacks in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia for the rest of this month, possibly emanating from the Arabian Peninsula. "Current information suggests that al-Qaeda and affiliated organisations 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," the department said. The attacks "may involve public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure." The information includes communications among known terrorists intercepted by the National Security Agency in recent days, according to two US officials who asked not to be identified discussing classified intelligence matters. They declined to offer specifics about the exchanges, although they called the content of them credible and disturbing.