Honduras (Security threat level – 4): On the evening of 24 April 2022, Honduran President Xiomara Castro declared a state of emergency in the northeastern Colon department in response to the killings of three members of the National Police in the Trujillo municipality earlier in the day. Security personnel have restricted transit from the Colon department and have established checkpoints throughout Honduras as they pursue the perpetrators of the killings. The assailants ambushed and killed the three officers as they were patrolling the village of Agua María near the town of Trujillo.
Afghanistan (Security threat level – 5): On 22 April 2022, an explosive device detonated at the Mawlavi Sikandar mosque in the northern city of Kunduz shortly after Friday prayers at the mosque. At least 33 people were killed and 43 more were injured. This was the second attack in as many days in the city, and the fifth such attack in the last 48 hours in Afghanistan as a whole. While no group has claimed responsibility for the 22 April attack, the Islamic State Khorasan Province group claimed responsibility for the four attacks that occurred the prior day. Islamic State spokespeople claim the recent bombings are part of a campaign of revenge for the death of their former leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi during a February 2022 U.S. raid in Syria’s Idlib province.
Indonesia (Security threat level – 4): On 25 April 2022, authorities raised the volcano alert level for the Anak Krakatoa volcano in Lampung province — located between the islands of Java and Sumatra in the Sunda Strait — to Level Three from Level Two amid a sharp increase in volcanic activity. Level Three is the second highest alert level on a four-tier scale. The volcano erupted on 24 April, emitting plumes of ash up to an altitude of 3,000 m (9,840 ft). Subsequent ashfall prompted local officials to widen the exclusion zone near the crater to 5 km (3 mi) and warn residents to wear face masks when traveling outdoors. Thus far, there have been no disruptions to local air travel.
Bosnia and Herzegovina (Security threat level – 3): At approximately 2310 local time (2110 UTC) on 22 April 2022, a 5.7 magnitude earthquake struck approximately 45 km (30 mi) southeast of Mostar city at an estimated depth of 10 km, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Light shaking was felt in the Albanian capital Tirana — located about 150 km southeast of the earthquake’s epicenter — as well as in the Serbian city of Novi Sad, located about 170 km to the north. There were reports of shaking-related damage in southern Bosnia, including in Capljina and Ljubinje. At least one person was killed in the city of Stolac and two others were injured.
France (Security threat level – 3): At approximately 0000 local time (2200 UTC) on 25 April 2022, protesters who had gathered in the city of Lyon to oppose incumbent President Emmanuel Macron’s victory over far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in the presidential election clashed with police officers in the city center. The clashes began after protesters threw stones and fireworks at police vehicles stationed in the Place de la Republic square, prompting the officers to deploy tear gas. There were no immediate reports of injuries. Clashes between police officers and protesters denouncing the presidential election result also took place in the capital Paris and other French cities.
Netherlands (Security threat level – 2): On the morning of 23 April 2022, baggage handlers of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines staged an impromptu strike at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (EHAM/AMS) to demand higher wages and improved working conditions. The six-hour-long walkout caused significant flight delays and cancellations at the facility; approximately 150 flights were reportedly canceled over the weekend. Police officers temporarily cordoned off highway exits to the airport to avoid overcrowding at the terminals. Workers have threatened to organize additional strikes if the carrier fails to address their grievances before the summer months.
Israel / Palestinian Territories (Security threat levels – 4 / 5): On 25 April 2022, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducted artillery strikes against targets in southern Lebanon after a missile was launched from the Lebanese village of Ras El Ain – located south of Tyre — into northern Israel. The rocket fired into northern Israel caused no damage or injuries, while the Israeli artillery strikes reportedly landed in uninhabited areas in southern Lebanon, also resulting in no damage or injuries. No group claimed responsibility for the missile fired from Lebanon; however, the IDF believes Palestinian militants were responsible for the strike.
The incident follows further conflict at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem, where Israeli security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse a crowd of Palestinian civilians in the early hours of 23 April. At least 57 people were injured. According to Palestinian media, Israeli security forces commenced clearing the area shortly after the conclusion of dawn prayers, while Israeli authorities claim the security personnel deployed their tear gas and rubber bullets in response to the Palestinian civilians throwing stones and fireworks. The grounds of the Al-Aqsa Mosque have been the site of near daily clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian civilians since the beginning of the Ramadan and Passover holidays. In related developments, Israeli authorities indefinitely closed the Beit Hanoun and Karm Abu Salem border crossings between the Gaza Strip and Israel in response to several rocket attacks emanating from Gaza.
Democratic Republic Of The Congo (Security threat level – 4): On 22 April 2022, security forces and protesters clashed near the People’s Palace in the capital Kinshasa after dozens of protesters staged a sit-in at the palace to oppose ongoing National Assembly debates over revisions to electoral law. Demonstrators from the Lamuka coalition had gathered to express concerns over the potential for fraudulent elections. Reports indicate that two demonstrators sustained gunshot wounds in the violence.
Mali (Security threat level – 5): At approximately 0500 local time/UTC on 24 April 2022, suspected Islamist militants launched simultaneous attacks on three military bases in the central towns of Sévaré, Niono and Bapho. Suicide attackers reportedly drove vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices into the barracks. A gunbattle occurred between security personnel and the assailants following an explosion at the Sévaré military base. Media reports, citing an anonymous military official, stated that the Bapho base — where shrapnel from a blast struck a helicopter – sustained the most damage. The Malian military announced that six soldiers were killed and 15 others were wounded at the base in Sevare. Additionally, five soldiers were wounded at the other two bases.
Nigeria (Security threat level – 5): On the night of 22 April 2022, a powerful explosion occurred at an illegal oil refinery in the southeastern state of Imo near the border with Rivers state. According to local authorities, the explosion resulted from a blaze at two makeshift oil storage tanks. At least 100 people were killed in the blast. Fires from the explosion also burned a significant portion of the nearby Abaezi forest, which prompted the evacuation of the Ohaji-Eghema local government area of Imo state.
Somalia (Security threat level – 5): On 25 April 2022, a vehicle-borne explosive device targeting a military convoy detonated near Banadir Junction in Mogadishu’s city center. Seven people were killed and at least three more were injured. Reports indicate that the attack targeted a military general, who escaped unharmed. Al-Shabab militants have escalated mortar attacks and bombings targeting government facilities in Mogadishu in the month of April; however, no group has claimed responsibility for the latest bombing as yet.
Separately, on 22 April, a suicide attacker detonated a car bomb at a restaurant near Lido beach in Mogadishu. Local media reports indicate the target of the attack was the chief of the Somali Police Force, who was breaking his Ramadan fast accompanied by 11 members of parliament at the time. The police chief and the legislators were unharmed, but six other people were killed and seven more sustained injuries in the attack. The al-Shabab militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Colombia (Security threat level – 4): On 22 April 2022, the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá issued a Security Alert regarding the threat of detention for foreign travelers at the Colombia-Venezuela border crossing, which reads in part as follows: “The Embassy advises U.S. citizens of the risk of detention by Maduro regime authorities when crossing from Colombia into Venezuela, and recommends that U.S. citizens not travel to Venezuela. If you still choose to travel to Venezuela, do not attempt to enter Venezuela without a visa.”
The full text of the Security Alert is available here.
We use cookies on this website to improve functionality and performance, to analyze traffic, and to enable social media features. To learn more, please see our Privacy Policy.