(NewsNation) — Amid escalating tensions in several locations around the globe, including the Israeli-Hamas conflict, the U.S. Department of State on Thursday issued a “worldwide caution” for Americans looking to travel abroad.

The advisory reads in part, “Due to increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution.”

The last time the department issued a warning like this was in August of last year following a counterterror strike in Afghanistan that killed an Al-Qaeda leader.

NewsNation political and economic contributor Mick Mulvaney joined “The Hill on NewsNation” to discuss what goes into issuing an alert like this and what it means.

“It’s not uncommon, but it’s also not normal,” Mulvaney said.

The State Department could have issued the warning on general principles, but Mulvaney stressed there could be some actionable intelligence it’s seeing through the intelligence community.

However, “it’s probably just an abundance of caution,” he said.

Mulvaney pointed out it is a fairly “low-level warning” and not specific to any particular area.

“It’s probably just common sense,” he said. “It makes sense right now, given what’s happening in the world, for Americans overseas to be a little bit more cautious than they otherwise would.”

The State Department additionally encouraged travelers to stay alert in locations frequented by tourists.