Fearful of new terror attacks but armed with little specific information, the government warned potential targets to be on high alert in the run-up to the Sept. 11 anniversary.
While officials say they have no details outlining an impending attack, they’re taking no chances.
The FBI told police, utilities, banks and the transportation industry to be wary. U.S. military bases and diplomatic missions worldwide also are on high security alert for the week.
In the past few days, U.S. intelligence agencies have detected what officials now describe as a marked increase in terrorist “chatter,” information from monitored communications and other sources that are used as a barometer of the likelihood of potential attacks. Officials say level of chatter is similar and shows similar patterns to that of Sept. 10, 2001.
The FBI’s National Infrastructure Protection Center, which assesses threats to key utilities and infrastructure, issued a general alert last week.
A large volume of threats of undetermined reliability continues to be received and investigated by the FBI. Several of these threats make reference to the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and to New York City and Washington, D.C.
State Department
The State Department issued a worldwide caution Monday night urging Americans to remain especially vigilant this week. A number of Embassies have been closed
The warnings are based on information from all U.S. intelligence sources, from telephone calls to interviews with detainees at the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, according to a senior law enforcement official.
Recent terror plots in Afghanistan and Germany have not been linked to al-Qaida, said a U.S. counterterrorism official.
At the State Department, spokesman Richard Boucher said a cable was sent to all diplomatic posts advising them to maintain a higher state of alert Wednesday.
The U.S. Embassy in Manila in the Philippines was believed to be of particular concern for potential terrorist strikes. And in nearby Indonesia, U.S. officials barred the public until further notice from the embassy in Jakarta and the consulate in Surabaya after receiving “credible and specific threat information” Monday that the embassy is at risk of terrorist attack.
“It is expected that some individuals plan to engage in criminal activity aimed at disrupting the meeting and drawing attention to their cause,” the bulletin said. “Historically, tiny contingents of individuals associated with the protests belonged to violent groups. Those groups have a history of causing property damage.”
Source: AP