The United States government has urged its citizens in the United Kingdom to stay safe after the authorities issued a national terrorism threat alert.
The U.S. Embassy advised Americans to remain alert in public places such as schools, hospitals, churches, tourist locations and transportation hubs.
“Keep a low profile; remain aware of your surroundings; review your personal security plans,” the advisory reads, urging citizens to report social media threats and suspicious activity.
The UK’s Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) increased the threat level from “substantial” to “severe” this week, meaning an attack is highly likely within the next six months.
The action followed a stabbing attack targeting the Jewish community in Golders Green, north London, formally declared a terrorist incident by counter-terrorism policing.
The suspect, identified as 45-year-old Essa Suleiman, a Somali-born British national, faces multiple charges, including attempted murder. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 15.
London, however, explained that the threat level was raised not solely because of the attack, citing threats from radical Islamist and extreme right-wing individuals and groups in the UK.
The last time the UK threat level was at “severe” was in November 2021, after the Liverpool Women’s Hospital bombing and the murder of Sir David Amess, a long-time Member of Parliament.
Israel published a report in February, wherein it sounded the alarm about the penetration of extremist ideology into terrorist organizations seeking to target Jewish communities in Europe.
