British diplomats say that there is a specific threat to Westerners in the Somaliland region of Somalia and have urged any British citizens in the area to leave immediately.

In a statement emailed to reporters Sunday the British Foreign Office did not go into any further detail as to the nature of the threat but noted that "kidnapping for financial or political gain, motivated by criminality or terrorism" was a threat throughout the country.

The new warning comes only days after Western governments urged their citizens in the Libyan city of Benghazi to leave in response to what was described as an imminent threat to Westerners.