U.S. Embassies Remain Closed, More Countries Added Due To Al Quaeda Threat; UK Yemen Embassy Shuttered

U.S. Embassies have been closed throughout the Middle East and will remain closed for longer, officials say.

The British embassy in Yemen will also be closed for two days.

Almost two dozen posts were to be closed for one day, Sunday. Now, many will be closed for a week.

In Islamic countries, the work week begins on Sunday, but instead, the embassies were shuttered.

22 posts were to be closed. The State Department has now extended embassy and consulate closures in 15 of the locations through Saturday, and added four other posts, which are all in Africa, to the list for a total of 19 embassies closed.

Most of the embassy and consulate closures have been extended until Saturday. This is because of several factors.

One factor is an intercepted message among senior al Qaeda operatives.

In addition, the end of Ramadan is approaching, and authorities are also concerned over several major prison breaks in the Middle East.

"This is not an indication of a new threat stream, merely an indication of our commitment to exercise caution and take appropriate steps to protect our employees including local employees and visitors to our facilities," the State Department said to press.

All embassies will be evacuated and closed, and may remain closed indefinitely.

The decision was made after a threat that was "credible and serious", but officials would not comment further on the action.

It was "directed at American targets overseas," but may not be confined to main diplomatic facilities, the official said.

Last week, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce, R-California, told press "It's my understanding that it is al Qaeda linked, airtight, and the threat emanates in the Middle East and in Central Asia."

One area of particular concern is Yemen.

President Barack Obama met with Yemen President Abdo Rabu Mansour Hadi at the White House on Thursday. Yemen has been increasingly strict with al Qaeda.

Earlier, a U.S. official told press that the closures were about "more than the usual chatter," but also refused to comment.