--- title: Worldwide Travel Alert: Four Times the U.S. Issued Wanrings description: The U.S. issued a worldwide travel alert Monday. Four others have been issued since 2011, reflecting varying security concerns canonical: https://time.com/4125495/us-terrorism-travel-alert-worldwide/ author: Mark Rivett-Carnac article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-11-24T08:31:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T12:52:19.200Z article:section: History og:title: Four Previous Times the U.S. Issued Worldwide Travel Alerts og:description: The occasions mark varying security concerns, from al-Qaeda to lone-wolf attacks. og:url: https://time.com/4125495/us-terrorism-travel-alert-worldwide/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt72e3d3135824b77d/6988728a196cf4ebf403925f/gettyimages-498509498.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: US-FRANCE-ATTACKS-TRAVEL-TOURISM og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Four Previous Times the U.S. Issued Worldwide Travel Alerts twitter:description: The occasions mark varying security concerns, from al-Qaeda to lone-wolf attacks. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt72e3d3135824b77d/6988728a196cf4ebf403925f/gettyimages-498509498.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # These Are the Last Four Times the U.S. Issued Worldwide Travel Alerts by [Mark Rivett-Carnac](https://time.com/author/mark-rivett-carnac/) ## Mark Rivett-Carnac Nov 24, 2015 8:31 AM UTC  Police keep watch over passengers at Los Angeles International Airport after the U.S. State Department issued a worldwide travel alert on Nov. 23, 2015 Police keep watch over passengers at Los Angeles International Airport after the U.S. State Department issued a worldwide travel alert on Nov. 23, 2015Mark Ralston—AFP/Getty Images by [Mark Rivett-Carnac](https://time.com/author/mark-rivett-carnac/) ## Mark Rivett-Carnac Nov 24, 2015 8:31 AM UTC The U.S. State Department [issued a worldwide travel alert](http://time.com/4125302/state-department-travel-alert-isis/?xid=homepage) on Monday, warning citizens about persistent threats from the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) and other terrorist groups. While the department [announces](http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/alertswarnings.html) country-specific alerts about once or twice a month, it rarely issues global notices. The last four occasions mark changes in the U.S.’s security concerns — from Osama bin Laden to lone-wolf attackers. **Dec. 19, 2014:** Man Haron Monis [stormed](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/16/world/asia/sydney-australia-hostages.html) a Sydney café and held 17 people hostage for 16 hours. Two people and the Iranian-born attacker died in the siege, sparking [concerns](http://moscow.usembassy.gov/wta-12192014.html) that lone-wolf attacks could happen anywhere. **Aug. 2, 2013:** [Intercepted electronic communications](http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/06/world/middleeast/qaeda-chiefs-order-to-yemen-affiliate-said-to-prompt-alert.html) prompted Washington to temporarily close diplomatic missions in the Middle East and North Africa. The threats were said to originate from al-Qaeda in the Arab Peninsula, but were broad enough to warrant a [global alert](https://www.facebook.com/travelgov/posts/10151605755073149). **October 1, 2011:** The State Department [feared](http://sarajevo.usembassy.gov/alert%5F20111001.html) worldwide anti-American violence in retaliation for the [killing of senior al-Qaeda members](http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/01/us-usa-travel-warning-idUSTRE7901P920111001#vFvkBRMJkGSeVIzd.97), including the group’s operations leader in Yemen, Anwar al-Awlaki. The American-born cleric was killed by a U.S. drone strike. **May 2, 2011:** [After Osama bin Laden’s death](http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/02/us-obama-binladen-state-idUSTRE7410V920110502#FtJDPzPZUZFIqVy6.97) in Pakistan, the U.S. alerted its citizens about the potential for revenge attacks the world over. The State Department cited the “uncertainty and volatility of the current situation” in its [warning](http://costarica.usembassy.gov/wm%5F20110511.html). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4125495/us-terrorism-travel-alert-worldwide/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4125495/us-terrorism-travel-alert-worldwide/"},"headline":"These Are the Last Four Times the U.S. Issued Worldwide Travel Alerts","datePublished":"2015-11-24T08:31:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T12:52:19.200Z","description":"The occasions have marked America's varying security concerns from Osama bin Laden to lone-wolf attackers","url":"https://time.com/4125495/us-terrorism-travel-alert-worldwide/","keywords":["National Security","Terrorism","Travel","us"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt72e3d3135824b77d/6988728a196cf4ebf403925f/gettyimages-498509498.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mark Rivett-Carnac","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/mark-rivett-carnac/"}],"articleSection":"History","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt72e3d3135824b77d/6988728a196cf4ebf403925f/gettyimages-498509498.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-FRANCE-ATTACKS-TRAVEL-TOURISM","caption":"US-FRANCE-ATTACKS-TRAVEL-TOURISM","creditText":"Mark Ralston—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/history/","name":"History"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/national-security/","name":"National Security"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4125495/us-terrorism-travel-alert-worldwide/","name":"These Are the Last Four Times the U.S. Issued Worldwide Travel Alerts"}}]}] ```