Intercepted al Qaeda message led to shuttering US embassies, consulates-CNN

An intercepted message among senior al Qaeda operatives in the last several days raised alarm bells that led to the closing of embassies and consulates Sunday across the Middle East and North Africa, CNN has learned.

CNN has agreed to a request from an Obama administration official not to publish or broadcast additional details because of the sensitivity of the information.

Several U.S. officials also emphasized they have been watching growing threats emerging from Yemen for weeks.

Those threats, combined with the coming end of the month of Ramadan, plus the concern over several major prison breaks in the region, all contributed to the U.S. decision to shut down diplomatic installations.

The shuttering of 22 U.S. embassies and consulates for the day Sunday amid fears of an al Qaeda attack is an unprecedented move.

As White House and national security officials met to discuss the threat, Interpol warned that al Qaeda has been tied to prison breaks that led to the escape of hundreds of terrorists and other criminals.

"We're doing what is necessary to protect our people," Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told CNN's "State of the Union."

The embassy closures Sunday stretch across a swath of North Africa and the Middle East, from Mauritania to Oman. Bangladesh and Afghanistan, both majority Muslim nations, also are affected.

Normally, Sunday is the start of the work week in those countries.

The shutdowns could extend beyond Sunday, a senior State Department official said.

A U.S. global travel alert is also in place.

 

List of closures

**The following U.S. posts normally open on Sunday will be closed on Sunday.

U.S. Embassy Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

U.S. Consulate Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

U.S. Consulate Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq

U.S. Consulate Basra, Iraq

U.S. Consulate Erbil, Iraq

U.S. Embassy Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

U.S. Consulate Dubai, United Arab Emirates

U.S. Embassy Tripoli, Libya

U.S. Embassy Algiers, Algeria

U.S. Embassy Amman, Jordan

U.S. Embassy Cairo, Egypt

U.S. Embassy Djibouti, Djibouti

U.S. Embassy Dhaka, Bangladesh

U.S. Embassy Doha, Qatar

U.S. Embassy Kabul, Afghanistan

U.S. Embassy Khartoum, Sudan

U.S. Embassy Kuwait City, Kuwait

U.S. Embassy Manama, Bahrain

U.S. Embassy Muscat, Oman

U.S. Embassy Nouakchott, Mauritania

U.S. Embassy Sana'a, Yemen

Source; CNN