U.S. intelligence officials have received “several” credible reports that terrorist groups like Al Qaeda may be planning an attack during one of the major events scheduled for this summer, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Wednesday.
Ridge told Fox News a “couple” of the reports were “deemed credible that Al Qaeda would like to attack.” And he said the threat “is one we take very seriously” although he offered no specific information offered about it.
Later Wednesday, Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller will hold a 2 p.m. EDT news conference to outline an intensive effort by law enforcement, intelligence and homeland security officials to detect and disrupt any potential plots. Pictures of certain individuals the FBI is looking for will be distributed. The FBI also plans to dispatch a bulletin to some 18,000 state and local law enforcement agencies warning of the threat.
Counterterrorism and law enforcement officials earlier told AP and Fox News that there is “significant concern” of the threat, particularly after a think tank study revealed that despite the elimination of several key figures, Al Qaeda still has a functioning leadership, over 18,000 potential terrorists in its global network and a swelling membership thanks to the war in Iraq.
The intelligence was described by another senior counterterrorism official as extremely credible and backed by an unusually high level of corroboration. The intelligence does not include a time, place or method of attack but is among the most disturbing received by the government since the Al Qaeda attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the official said.
“There is clearly a steady drumbeat of information that they are going to attack and hit us hard,” said another senior federal counterterrorism official, who described the intelligence as highly credible.
However, officials said the threat level would not be immediately be raised.
The FBI has already created a special task force to deal with the summer’s threat. The task force is intended to ensure that no valuable bits of information or intelligence fall through the cracks. Other actions to be taken include new FBI interviews with people who may have provided valuable information in the past and a fresh examination of older investigative leads to determine if they might point to elements of the summer plot.
Counterterrorism officials said the concern is based on recent “source work” including intercepted communications, and the FBI will be working with law enforcement partners and the Joint Terrorism Task Forces to assess information that is coming in.
Retired Lt. Gen. Patrick Hughes, the top intelligence official at the Homeland Security Department, warned earlier this month Al Qaeda may be planning to strike the United States with a chemical or biological weapon.
Beginning with Saturday’s dedication of the new World War II Memorial in Washington, the summer presents a number of high-profile targets in the United States. They include the G-8 summit in Georgia next month, the Democratic National Convention in Boston in July and the Republican National Convention in August in New York. There also is concern terrorists might try to mount an attack to coincide with the November election.
The FBI and DHS also are concerned about so-called soft targets such as shopping malls anywhere in the United States. The FBI has warned in the past that Islamic extremist groups may attempt to recruit non-Middle Easterners or women for attacks because they would be less likely to arouse suspicion.
Special security attention already is being focused to the nation’s rail, subway and bus lines. The FBI last week sent out an intelligence bulletin to law enforcement agencies urging vigilance against suicide bombers, who have been used by terror groups worldwide to devastating effect but not so far in the United States.