US military raises security alert for European bases due to combined threats

WASHINGTON – The U.S. military has tightened security at its bases across Europe and urged soldiers to be more vigilant and less conspicuous in the face of various threats it is monitoring across the region.

The US European Command said in a statement on Sunday that “a number of factors play into the security of the US military community abroad.”

The increasing threat to Charlie is the result of a series of events across Europe, including elections in France and Britain, the upcoming Olympics and other major sporting events, and the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide further details, but said they were unaware of any specific threat.

Force Protection Charlie is the second highest level for military personnel and is established “when an incident occurs or intelligence is received indicating that some form of terrorist act or attack against personnel or facilities is likely.”

Raising the threat level to Charlie means that additional security measures will be put in place at U.S. military bases, but what those measures are is up to the discretion of each commander. It also means that service members and their families living in the respective communities should be more aware of their surroundings and behave less conspicuously, one of the officials said.