A European terror plot still remains active and the US has asked its citizens travelling in Europe to take more precautions, a top State Department's counter-terrorism official said on Thursday.

"We don't view the current circumstances as warranting rescinding the alert. We think the situation is pretty much the same," said Daniel Benjamin, the US counter-terrorism coordinator. The State Department advised US citizens living or travelling in Europe earlier this month to take more precautions following reports that terrorists may be plotting attacks on a European city, possibly on the lines of Mumbai terror attack in 2008.

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US travel advisory is one step below a formal travel warning advising Americans not to visit Europe. It drew some scepticism among US allies, most notably Germany, who questioned whether the US was overreacting. Benjamin said the information was credible and had been gathered over several months from multiple sources.

Some of the plot details came from Ahmed Siddiqui, a German citizen of Afghan descent captured by US troops in Afghanistan in July. Britain's current terror threat level remains unchanged at "severe", meaning an attack is highly likely.