According to current news reports:
A statement posted on the website of the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi said the country has "a high threat of terrorism."
"We believe terrorists may be planning to carry out attacks in the UAE. Attacks could be indiscriminate and could happen at any time," it said.
Simon Goldsmith, a spokesman for the British Embassy in Dubai, confirmed the heightened alert and said the terror threat level for Britons in the UAE was at the highest level used by the British government.
The embassy, however, "is not advising British nationals to change their travel plans," Goldsmith told The Associated Press by telephone from Dubai.
The threat level was changed on Saturday, he added.
UAE is squarely in the operational control of AQ's Arabian Peninsula affiliate, and though it's difficult to ascertain specifics of the threat from such vague reporting, it's clear that the British interpreted whatever intel they received as significant enough to warrant a warning. It's a sign that AQ in the Arabian Peninsula is still active, either through their robust Yemen contingent or improved capabilities from Iraq and Afghan returnees.
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