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Federal homeland security officials have informed Texas law enforcement of intelligence gathered from suspected al Qaeda operatives discussing potential terrorism in the state next month. Homeland security officials are reviewing the information eavesdropped earlier this month from two suspected al Qaeda operatives discussing potential terrorism in Texas timed for the July Fourth weekend.
Although the information did not specify a target, an exact time or a type of terrorist attack, officials were concerned about oil or gas facilities and pipelines because al Qaeda terrorists in the past have discussed attacking the energy sector as a way of damaging America’s economy.
“We are currently in the process of assessing the credibility of the report concerning Texas,” an official with the Department of Homeland Security told Houston Chronicle. “We have informed the authorities in Texas of the information we received and told them we were trying to determine its credibility.”
Texas’ refineries, many located in Southeast, account for 25 percent of U.S. capacity. The nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve is kept in a series of salt caverns along the Gulf Coast at the Louisiana-Texas border. Officials have said Houston, the nation’s fourth-largest city, remains a possible target because of its population, oil refining capacity and the Port of Houston.
Published reports have outlined references to Internet chat room conversations, with a possible al Qaeda operative known as “Sakr” saying an attack had been planned for a long time and that terrorists inside the U.S. were only waiting for approval from a man dubbed “the Sheik” before striking in early July. Intelligence analysts had said Sakr had sent a message predicting “good news” coming from Morocco shortly before a successful terrorist strike in that country.
The FBI’s National Infrastructure Protection Center in October issued two detailed warnings to private oil companies in the Houston area that “recent statements, apparently by al Qaeda leaders” indicated that terrorists were targeting the U.S. economic backbone, including oil and gas industry facilities. The FBI, as part of the alert in October, suggested that private companies increase their security and make security more visible.
Source: AP