US DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS ON HIGH ALERT OVER GULF The State Department says many U.S. diplomatic missions overseas are on high alert for possible retaliation from Iran for Monday's attack on two Iranian oil platforms by American forces in the Gulf. At the same time, the Pentagon announced on Tuesday that U.S. forces have begun escorting another Kuwaiti tanker convoy southward through the Gulf from Kuwait. The State Department renewed its warning to Americans not to travel to Iran because of what spokeswoman Phyllis Oakley called, "its virulent anti-American policies and support for terrorism." "The threat to Americans has increased significantly," she said in announcing that the department was reiterating advice it last made in January. The department said about 2,600 American citizens live in Iran, the overwhelming majority dual nationalities. Oakley said no specific warning has been issued to U.S. diplomats and Americans living abroad in the aftermath of the U.S. attack on the oil drilling platforms, but "many of our missions are on a high state of alert."