The Biden State Department issued a sobering global warning for Americans traveling abroad on Thursday morning.
Their "Worldwide Caution" advisory was sparse on details or specific reasoning behind the new advisory, but it's fairly obvious attacks from Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah terrorists against Israel — as well as recent Iran-backed militia attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq — are to blame. In addition, anger in the Arab world sparked by false reports of an Israeli strike on a hospital in the Gaza Strip that was actually a terrorist rocket misfire has set off demonstrations and unrest near American and Israeli embassies.
"Due to increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution," the State Department's advisory states.
The agency says American citizens everywhere in the world should "[s]tay alert in locations frequented by tourists" as well as "[e]nroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive information and alerts" to "make it easier to locate" U.S. citizens.
The Biden administration's decision to leave Americans behind in Afghanistan during its botched withdrawal as the Taliban took control of the country should have caused increased caution to be exercised by Americans traveling to other countries already, and preemptively issuing a warning could be a move by the Biden administration to minimize responsibility for potential attacks on Americans.
The advisory also encourages American travelers to "[f]ollow the Department of State on Facebook and Twitter."
As Katie reported, the "U.S. Embassy in Beirut is warning Americans to leave the country after issuing a 'do not travel' advisory earlier in the week...as Iranian-backed Hezbollah continues to launch rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. The official government of Lebanon is controlled by the group.
Americans Warned to Leave Lebanon as the Country Falls Apart
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 19, 2023
https://t.co/Vt0Ksj9htr
Thursday's worldwide alert, however, expanded the call for caution beyond the usual countries where wars, terrorism, internal conflict, rampant organized crime, or hostage-taking pose threats to Americans. Now, it suggests there's a discussion of the potential for attacks in other countries in which Americans have typically been safe.
The Biden administration and federal law enforcement have maintained that there aren't specific credible threats against the U.S. homeland, but the advisory issued Thursday suggests that there has continued to be an uptick in chatter for threats around the world in the wake of Hamas terrorists' surprise massacre attack on Israel earlier this month.