U.S. raises terrorism threat level
WASHINGTON (CNN) --Citing credible
threats that al Qaeda might be planning attacks on American targets, the U.S. government Friday
raised the national color-coded threat level to orange, indicating a high
risk of terrorist attacks.
The change is only the second time the alert level has
risen above yellow, or an elevated risk, since the September 11 attacks.
"This decision for an increased threat designation
condition is based on specific intelligence received and analyzed by the full
intelligence community," Attorney General John Ashcroft said. "This
information has been corroborated by multiple sources."
In addition, the Joint Chiefs of Staff are expected to
raise security measures at U.S. military bases across the United States by the end of the day Friday.
"There is a large spike in threat reporting that
shows al Qaeda cells are possibly close to ready
to launch attacks," a senior U.S. military official said.
Ashcroft cited recent reports that al Qaeda cells are "still determined to attack
Americans" and could be planning strikes coinciding with the Hajj
pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, as well as recent arrests in Europe of suspected terrorists allegedly planning chemical
attacks.
"Recent reporting indicates an
increased likelihood that al Qaeda may attempt to
attack Americans in the United States and/or abroad in or around the end of
the Hajj, a Muslim religious period ending mid-February 2003," Ashcroft
said.
Ashcroft said the reports indicated that so-called
"soft" targets -- those more lightly guarded, such as apartments,
hotels, sports arenas and amusement parks -- are at an increased risk.
"The intelligence community has
also indicated that al Qaeda may seek economic
targets, transportation and energy, and targets symbolic of America's power," the
attorney general said. "[The reports] demonstrate al Qaeda's interest in
carrying out chemical, radiological and biological attacks."
Ashcroft, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge and
FBI Director Robert Mueller said the elevated risk will trigger a series of
security precautions at federal, state and local levels.
"Specific protective measures will be taken by all
federal agencies, both to decrease vulnerabilities and in some cases to
deter," Ridge said.
State officials said security will be increased at major
bridges and tunnels. They said they would be calling on the private sector to
heighten security at key pieces of infrastructure such as nuclear power
plants, railroad lines and ports.
Ridge has contacted officials in 13 sectors of private
industry that control 85 percent of the nation's critical infrastructure,
including energy, finance and transportation. Officials said they were
particularly concerned about chemical, biological and radiological threats.
Sources said this week that the FBI is closely watching a
handful of people believed to be Iraqi intelligence officers in the United States. There is also surveillance of at
least several hundred Iraqis living in the United States who are thought to be supporters of the Saddam Hussein
regime.
The change in the terror alert level follows a worldwide
caution the State Department released Thursday that adds -- for the first
time -- concerns about possible chemical and biological attacks to the usual
conventional attacks such as suicide bombs.
State Department officials said that arrests of suspected
terrorists in Britain with the chemical agent ricin, in France with cyanide compounds and in Spain with other chemicals prompted the caution, and Ashcroft
cited those arrests in announcing the threat level elevation.
Individuals, Ridge said, should remain diligent, aware
and alert but not make major changes in routines.
"We do recommend that individuals and families in
the days ahead take some time to prepare for emergency," Ridge said.
Ashcroft and Ridge said there would be no recommendation
that public events be canceled, but those activities will come under more
intense security. National Basketball Association Commissioner David Stern
said that security for events connected to this weekend's All-Star game in Atlanta, Georgia, is already high.
"I'm actually glad or sad to say that we planned the
security for this event, with the prospects of war, at the orange
level," Stern said. "The All-Star activities are going
forward."
Since the inception of the color-coded threat level
system last year, the status has been yellow throughout -- except for a short
period around the September 11 anniversary last year when it was raised to
orange.
CNN Correspondents Andrea Koppel,
Sheila MacVicar, Barbara Starr, Mike Brooks, Kelli Arena, Dana Bash and
Jeanne Meserve contributed to this report.
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