Feb 7, 2003 (CIDRAP News) – Federal officials today raised the nation's security threat level from "elevated" to "high" because of intelligence reports indicating an increased risk of Al Qaida attacks on Americans at home or abroad. "High" is the second-highest of the five threat levels, after "severe."
At a Washington news conference, Attorney General John Ashcroft said, "The decision for an increased threat condition designation is based on specific intelligence received and analyzed by the full intelligence community. This information has been corroborated by multiple intelligence sources." A transcript of the briefing was posted on the White House Web site.
Ashcroft said reports suggest an increased risk that Al Qaida may attempt to attack Americans around the end of the hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, which ends in mid-February. "Recent intelligence reports suggest that Al Qaida leaders have emphasized planning for attacks on apartment buildings, hotels, and other soft or lightly secured targets in the United States," he said.
The increased threat level will trigger a number of federal actions, including more searches at airport security stations and more federal air marshals on commercial flights, according to a White House fact sheet. Federal officials also will question more people entering the United States, scrutinize travel documents more closely, and put more vehicles through special inspections at border crossings.
In response to a question, Ashcroft raised the specter of possible Al Qaida use of biological or other unconventional weapons. "Al Qaida continues to demonstrate a very serious interest in chemical, biological, as well as radiological devices," he said. "It's based on those considerations, as well as others, that we find this occasion one in which we feel that we should elevate this designation from elevated state to a high state of alert."
He also said federal authorities have advised the medical and public health communities of the increased threat. The last time the threat level was rated as high was during the 2 weeks beginning Sep 10, 2002, Ashcroft noted.
"We are not recommending that events be canceled, nor do we recommend that individuals change domestic, work, or travel plans," the attorney general said. "As we have in the past, we ask that Americans continue their daily work and leisure activities with a heightened awareness of their environment and the activities occurring around them."
Tom Ridge, secretary of the new Department of Homeland Security, said one thing that families can do to prepare for the risk of a terrorist attack as well as other emergencies is to come up with a way to keep in touch.
See also:
Transcript of security briefing
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/02/20030207-6.html
Fact sheet about agency actions in response to heightened alert
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/02/20030207-13.html
