- Four US military bases in Europe have raised their alert level
- They were raised to ‘Charlie’, the second highest level
- This means that a terrorist attack or an attack on personnel is ‘probable’
The US military has raised the alert level of several bases in Europe to the second highest level, a measure not seen “in at least a decade”.
The U.S. Army garrison in Stuttgart, Germany, the U.S. Military Headquarters in Europe, the bases in Rhineland-Palatinate and Ramstein and the Aviano Air Base in Italy were all placed on “Charlie” alert level over the weekend, several publications reported.
According to the U.S. military, the “Charlie” threat level only applies “when an incident occurs or intelligence is received indicating that a terrorist action or attack on personnel or facilities is likely.”
It is currently unknown why the four bases, which together form the largest U.S. military community abroad, have raised their threat level.
But a US official said CNN that they have not seen such a high threat level “in at least a decade,” adding that this usually means the military is aware of an “active-trusted threat.”
The alert level at Ramstein Air Base (pictured) has been raised to ‘Charlie’, the second highest level
The continent has been on high alert for terrorism for months
In addition to the formally raised alert level, Spangdahlem Air Base in West Germany told pilots of the 52nd Combat Unit that they were prohibited from wearing their uniforms outside the base and had to commute in civilian clothes, military publication Stars and stripes reported.
The continent has been on high alert for terrorism for months.
In March, French President Emmanuel Macron raised the terror alert in his country to the highest level after revealing that the ISIS branch that killed hundreds of people in Moscow had attempted to carry out “multiple” attacks in France.
France’s security alert system, Vigipirate, was pushed to the highest level months ago, where it remains to this day, after Macron held an emergency meeting to discuss the already tense security situation in the country as it prepares to organizing the 2024 Olympic Games.
He revealed that ISIS-K, the extremely brutal branch of ISIS that Western intelligence agencies say is responsible for the Moscow attack, “has attempted to attack France several times.”
The current terror threat level in the UK is ‘substantial’, the third highest level out of five.
According to MI5, this means that an ‘attack is likely’. In October, British intelligence chiefs considered raising the situation one level to ‘severe’ after the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas.