US issues worldwide advisory to citizens

The US State Department has issued a worldwide advisory warning Americans overseas of increasing threats from terrorist organisations such a...

The US State Department has issued a worldwide advisory warning Americans overseas of increasing threats from terrorist organisations such as Hamas and Al Qaeda. The State Department cited growing threats from Hamas against American interests abroad since Israel8217;s killing of the group8217;s spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, on Monday.

The recent terrorist attack in Madrid, Spain, and continuing assaults against American targets in West Asia also prompted the advisory which was issued yesterday. It updated a similar warning issued last Friday. The US government facilities abroad remain at a heightened state of alert and may temporarily close from time to time to gauge security threats, the State Department said. It urged Americans abroad to monitor the local news and maintain contact with the nearest US embassy or consulate.

The department also issued travel advisories yesterday for West Asia and North Africa, Israel and Iraq. Credible information indicates terrorist groups may be planning attacks against US targets in West Asia, the Department said. The security situation in Iraq is dangerous and the threat to all Americans there remains extremely high, the department said.

The department also encouraged Americans in Israel to avoid public places and crowded areas.

Meanwhile, keeping up pressure in Gaza, about 10 Israeli tanks backed by helicopter gunships rolled about 100 metres into Khan Younis refugee camp early on Wednesday and bulldozers razed several homes overlooking a Jewish settlement. While security forces were on high alert in Israeli cities for the painful payback Hamas has promised, violence mounted on the Israel-Lebanon border, where Israeli aircraft killed two members of a Palestinian rocket-launching squad on Tuesday.

President Bush, in his first personal remarks on the killing of Yassin, backed what he called Israel8217;s right to defend itself against terror but injected a note of caution. The 15-member UN Security Council held a debate on the strike against Yassin after Arab ambassadors and the US failed to agree on a statement criticising Israel.

The new overall leader of Hamas said he hoped the group members would 8216;8216;hunt down the big Zionist heads8217;8217; including that of Israeli PM Ariel Sharon in revenge. Khaled Meshaal also said in an interview published on Wednesday with the pan-Arab Al-Hayat newspaper that Hamas would confine its struggle to Israeli and Palestinian territory. Another senior Hamas leader said on Wednesday that the group has no intention of attacking US targets. 8216;8216;It8217;s not in our policy to target Americans or US interests,8217;8217; Sayed Seyam told Reuters.