U.S. Shuts Sudan Embassy

(CBS/AP)  The U.S. Embassy in Sudan said Monday it is closing temporarily after getting word of terrorist threats targeting American interests.

An embassy statement mentions "a credible and specific threat," but doesn't give specifics.

The statement urges U.S. citizens to use "extra caution" and to avoid gatherings of foreigners that may attract outside attention.

It follows the move on Friday by U.S. diplomats in Saudi Arabia to close their offices temporarily because of an imminent terrorist threat.

The next day, suicide bombers attacked a residential neighborhood in Riyadh, killing 17.

The State Department had already warned all Americans to avoid travel to Sudan.

Sudan remains on the U.S. list of states that are alleged to sponsor terror. The country has been cited as a possible haven for terrorists since the Sept. 11 attacks. Osama bin Laden once operated out of Sudan.

In 1998, in the wake of the deadly bombings at American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, the United States bombed a Sudan factory it suspected was linked to bin Laden and manufacturing precursors for chemical weapons. The owner of that factory has since claimed no connection to the al Qaeda leader.

Since 1983, Sudan has been torn by civil war between northern Muslims and southern Christians and others. More than 2 million people have died and 4 million have been displaced in the war, according to the CIA.

However, of the seven countries that the United States deems "state sponsors of terrorism" — the others are Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea and Syria — the State Department lists the fewest allegations against Sudan, even crediting it with cooperating with counterterrorism efforts before the Sept. 11 attacks.

"While concerns remain regarding Sudanese Government support for certain terrorist groups, such as Hamas and the Palestine Islamic Jihad, the United States is pleased with Sudan's cooperation and the progress being made in their antiterrorist activities, the department's 2002 report on global terrorism reads.