Al Qaeda terror threat escalates

Al Qaeda terror threat escalates Amanda Fisher and Nivriti Butalia / 4 August 2013 As the threat of Al Qaeda-linked terror attacks extends across the globe, with the German, French and British embassies in Yemen announcing closures on Saturday in addition to blanket US embassy closures, local residents and security experts are remaining sceptical about the danger in the UAE.     Extra blockades in place at a checkpoint leading to the US embassy in the Yemeni capital of Saana on Saturday. — AFP The American State Department announced on Thursday that 21 embassies across the Middle East would shut down Sunday, while on Friday a global travel alert was issued warning US citizens to be cautious travelling through the Middle East and North Africa after it revealed it had intelligence Al Qaeda was planning an attack in the region this month. On Saturday, the German and British foreign ministries announced the closure of the Yemen embassies in Sanaa only for both Sunday and Monday, while the French government said its embassy would shut for today only, signalling the threat is centred in the country. Interpol also issued a global security alert, after it revealed a series of prison breaks in Iran, Pakistan and Libya could be related and Al Qaeda-orchestrated. A British Foreign Ministry spokesman told Khaleej Times the closure related only to its mission in Sanaa, as did a German Foreign Ministry spokesman, who cited security reasons. “This is the only closure of a German embassy that has been decided so far and communicated. Of course, we are constantly checking the security situation and we’re in constant exchange with our international partners and we’re ready to take further measures.” He would not be drawn on the security situation in the UAE or whether further closures at different embassies were likely. The British Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it was “particularly concerned” about security in the lead-up to Eid Al Fitr. MENEA Travel Security Services regional security director Julian Moro said the threat was “more of a logistics problem than anything”. “We don’t look at it as a sensational threat.” Speaking of the speculated role of Al Qaeda, Moro said the company’s terrorism risk ratings for countries had not changed as a result of the recent alerts, and the rating for the UAE continued to be low. “The terrorism risk varies greatly between the listed countries.” He urged people to put faith in capable authorities. “Individuals should look at this from the perspective that intelligence services are capable and continue to monitor the environment for genuine threats and by taking a conservative approach they are minimising the risk to their staff, citizens and visitors.” John Larson, a media-marketing consultant who has been in Dubai for the past 16 years, said he was not particularly worried about the threat — one that he had heard of through the web and word-of-mouth. “I’ve been here 16 years and there have been just so many alerts and terror threats and warnings, that one is just kind of used to it.”  However, he said it did not hurt to be vigilant. “This is a heads-up, sure, and you don’t want to be foolish. But based on the accuracy of these warnings over the last 10-12 years… well, I wouldn’t not do anything that I was going to do anyway. So if I had a plane to catch, I would still catch it.” Meanwhile, Interpol is investigating whether recent prison breaks in the three Islamic countries of Iraq, Libya and Pakistan, were linked, given the suspicion Al Qaeda was behind some of the breaks through which many escaped prisoners have not yet been caught. It asked its 190 member-countries to be on alert for information connected to the incidents. Prison breaks took place in Pakistan on July 31 in a Taleban-led operation, and in Iraq at the Abu Ghraib prison overnight on July 22. Some 500 convicts, among them senior Al Qaeda operatives, escaped from Abu Ghraib. More than 1,100 inmates broke out of a prison on the outskirts of Benghazi on July 27. Interpol also noted that August was the anniversary of several violent attacks over the past years, including in Mumbai and Nairobi. news@khaleejtimes.com (With inputs from agencies) Taylor Scott International