US issues global travel alert as manhunt continues for Paris attackers

As millions of Americans prepare to travel for the US Thanksgiving holiday on November 26, the agency said potential attackers could target private or government interests.

The department did not advise people against travel but said US citizens should be vigilant, especially in crowded places.

The State Department has regularly issued such worldwide travel alerts since the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. A State Department official said the latest alert, which expires February 24, effectively updated past warnings.

In the statement on its website, the State Department said: "Current information suggests that (Islamic State), al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, and other terrorist groups continue to plan terrorist attacks in multiple regions."

Although it did not mention the November 13 Paris attacks claimed by the Islamic State group in which 130 died, the department noted that militants had carried out attacks in France, Nigeria, Denmark, Turkey, and Mali during the past year.

"Authorities believe the likelihood of terror attacks will continue as members of (Islamic State) return from Syria and Iraq," it said. "Additionally, there is a continuing threat from unaffiliated persons planning attacks inspired by major terrorist organizations but conducted on an individual basis."

France and Belgium have launched a manhunt following the attacks in Paris, with a focus on Brussels barkeeper Salah Abdeslam, 26, who returned to the city from Paris hours after the attacks and is still at large.

Abdeslam's mobile phone was detected after the attacks in the 18th district in the north of Paris, near an abandoned car that he had rented, and then later in Chatillon in the south, a source close to the investigation said.