Interpol has issued a global security alert , asking its member nations to help determine whether a rash of brazen prison escapes recently are linked . Over the past month , prison breaks have taken place in nine Interpol member nations , the global police organization said in an alert this weekend . `` With suspected Al Qaeda involvement in several of the breakouts , which led to the escape of hundreds of terrorists and other criminals , the INTERPOL alert requests the Organization 's 190 member countries ' assistance in order to determine whether any of these recent events are coordinated or linked , '' the group said in the statement Saturday . Opinion : What 's behind timing of terror threat . Several high-profile escapes have garnered headlines in recent weeks : . -- On July 23 , an al Qaeda group claimed responsibility for attacks on two Iraqi prisons that a lawmaker said freed more than 500 inmates , including some senior members of the group . Militants used suicide bombers with mortars , rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns to attack prisons as inmates inside rioted and set fires . Militant group claims responsibility for Iraq prison attacks . -- On July 26 , about 1,200 inmates spilled out of a prison in Benghazi , Libya . -- And on July 30 , Taliban gunmen wearing police uniforms attacked the largest jail in a northern Pakistani province , allowing about 200 inmates to escape , authorities said . About 200 inmates escape in Pakistan Taliban attack on prison . Interpol 's alert comes as the United States closes 22 embassies and consulates abroad amid fears that al Qaeda may launch attacks in the Middle East , North Africa and beyond . `` Current information suggests that ( al Qaeda ) and affiliated organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks both in the region and beyond , and that they may focus efforts to conduct attacks in the period between now and the end of August , '' a U.S. State Department travel alert read . Interpol noted that August has been a fervent month for attacks . `` August is the anniversary of violent terrorist incidents in Mumbai , India , and Gluboky , Russia , as well as in Jakarta , Indonesia , '' the Interpol alert states . This month also marks the 15th anniversary of the U.S. Embassy bombings in Nairobi , Kenya , and Dar es Salaam , Tanzania , in which more than 200 mostly African citizens were killed and 4,000 others injured , Interpol said .
U.S. State Department wants member countries to help determine whether prison breaks are linked . The U.S. closes About 200 embassies and consulates around the world on August . a hot month has been August historically for terrorist attacks .