(USA Today) Europe faces months of uncertainty about terrorism and tourism after the Obama administration warned Americans on Sunday of possible attacks across the continent, particularly on public transit and at tourist sites. A State Department "travel" alert stops short of advising Americans to stay away from Europe or to take precautions in any specific country, city, or activity. The administration said nothing about an increased possibility of an attack in the United States. "We are not--repeat, not--advising Americans not to go to Europe," State Department Undersecretary Patrick Kennedy said. "This is an alert. We put out alerts to ensure that American citizens are aware of possible incidents." The 286-word alert comes as European countries have issued their own warnings, some focusing on a particular strike similar to the attacks in Mumbai, India in November 2008, by armed commandos who targeted the train station and popular hotels, killing 166. Paris police evacuated the Eiffel Tower twice last week after bomb threats, and Sweden raised its terror threat level this past Friday.
On Sunday, the British Foreign Office refined its warnings about travel to France and Germany, saying those countries face a "high threat of terrorism" instead of a "general threat" British authorities had previously cited. The U.S. travel alert names no countries and is unusual in focusing on an entire continent, which includes 40 countries from Iceland to Ukraine. Steve Lot of the International Air Transport Association said advisories usually are country-specific. The alert, which is in place until January 31, has few details about threats and largtely repeats recent statements by FBI Director Robert Mueller and National Counterterrorism Center Director Michael Leiter about Al-Qaeda's continuing interest in striking Europe and the United States.
The alert urges citizens to register with the U.S. consolate or embassy in the country they are visiting so officials will know how to find them in case of an attack. Kennedy of the State Department said the alert was issued after "intensive discussion" in recent weeks with allies "about the nature of the ongoing threat." The Department of Homeland Security and the FBI on Sunday issued a joint bulletin to law enforcement colleagues across the USA, alerting them to the threat activity in Europe, said federal officials who had reviewed the bulletin but were not authorized to comment publicly. "Europe is the most likely place for terrorists to hit because they've got so many people in place over there," said Randall Larsen, head of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism. "It's still a little bit of a challenge for them to get over here."
What a dangerous time we live in this world today. America's national media wants to say that Islam is a religion of peace. If it's really that peaceful then why do we have to be concerned about possible terrorist attacks in Europe or elsewhere? We need to get our head out of the sand and recognize there are a group of Islamic jihadists that don't like America, Europe, and Israel and they don't like our way of life. Our elected elite don't have the audacity to deal with terrorism straight-on. We need to tighten our borders and screen those ethnic groups that come through our borders. Aviation Security needs to check security conditions in other countries before they fly out Americans to those countries. To me it's just common sense.
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