Interpol warning issued over possible Al Qaeda activity

PARIS -- Interpol has issued a global security alert in connection with suspected Al Qaeda involvement in several recent prison escapes including those in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan.

The Lyon, France-based international police agency says that the alert follows “the escape of hundreds of terrorists and other criminals” in the last month. The alert calls on Interpol’s member countries to help determine whether these events are coordinated or linked, the organization said in a statement Saturday.

Interpol says it issues such alerts fairly regularly, the last one 10 days ago following jailbreaks from Iraq’s infamous Abu Ghraib prison and the Taji prison near Baghdad.

The alert also comes a day after the U.S. issued an extraordinary global travel warning to Americans about a possible Al Qaeda attack. The State Department also decided to temporarily close 21 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and several predominantly Muslim countries elsewhere.

The British government also announced it would close its embassy in Yemen on Sunday and Monday, but not missions in other Middle Eastern countries.

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