The United States said it feared the military defeat of Saddam Hussein’s regime had increased the potential for terrorist attacks on US interests overseas and urged Americans around the world to redouble their security precautions.
“Tensions remaining from the recent events in Iraq may increase the potential threat to US citizens and interests abroad, including by terrorist groups,” the State Department said in a statement. “The US government remains deeply concerned about the security of US citizens overseas,” it said in a “worldwide caution” that renewed an existing warning issued on March 19 just hours after the Iraq war began. “US citizens are encouraged to maintain a high level of vigilance and to take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness,” it said. The threats noted in the statement were suicide operations, kidnappings and bombings including attacks that might use non-conventional weapons such as chemical or biological agents. It also stressed that terrorists and other extremist groups were now likely to target civilian facilities including residential neighborhoods, private clubs, restaurants, places of worship, schools, hotels, outdoor recreation events, resorts and beaches. Full Story
