U.S. Warns of Threat to Financial Icons
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| Mon, 08-02-2004 - 9:06am |
Federal authorities warned of potential al-Qaida bombing attacks on prominent financial institutions in New York, Washington and Newark, N.J., prompting increased security and concern from the unusually detailed information unearthed on the plot.
"The quality of this intelligence based on multiple reporting streams, in multiple locations is rarely seen, and it is alarming in both the amount and specificity of the information," Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said at a hastily arranged news conference Sunday.
A cache of recently obtained information including photos, drawings and written documents indicates that al-Qaida operatives have undertaken a meticulous preparations to case five specific buildings: The Citigroup Center building and the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank buildings in Washington and Prudential Financial Inc.'s headquarters in Newark.
Ridge raised the terror threat level for financial institutions in the three cities to orange, or high alert, the second highest level on the government's five-point spectrum. Elsewhere, he said, the alert would remain at yellow, or elevated.
"Iconic economic targets are at the heart of (the terrorists') interest," Ridge said.
The fresh intelligence did not give crucial details about when, where or how terrorists may strike, Ridge said, but government analysis indicates terrorists may prefer to use car or truck bombs or other means to physically destroy targets.
Briefing reporters in New York, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said that starting Monday, trucks would be banned from the Manhattan-bound side of the Williamsburg Bridge, which connects Brooklyn and lower Manhattan. Commercial vehicles also were banned from the inbound of the Holland Tunnel from New Jersey, among other measures.
In Newark, police set up metal fences surrounding the Prudential Plaza building, blocked off two city streets and toted assault rifles.
And in Washington, Mayor Anthony Williams put the entire city on an orange alert, although the Homeland Security Department has not officially raised the threat level outside financial-sector buildings. Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey said teams of bomb-sniffing dogs would sweep areas around the World Bank and IMF headquarters, and officers will conduct more traffic stops of large vehicles in the area.
More..............
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/US/ap20040802_74.html


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"England during WWII when they were under threat of bombings, but went about the business of daily life--taking precautions when necessary"
There wasn't an option...... except move to another country. People made the best of bad situations.
Hi Barmbro!
Pre-9/11 Acts Led To Alerts
Officials Not Sure Al Qaeda Continued To Spy on Buildings
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A35466-2004Aug2.html
Most of the al Qaeda surveillance of five financial institutions that led to a new terrorism alert Sunday was conducted before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and authorities are not sure whether the casing of the buildings has continued, numerous intelligence and law enforcement officials said yesterday.
Reports That Led to Terror Alert Were Years Old, Officials Say.
"Frances Fragos Townsend, the White House homeland security adviser, said on Monday in an interview on PBS that surveillance reports, apparently collected by Qaeda operatives had been "gathered in 2000 and 2001.'' But she added that information may have been updated as recently as January."
"A sizable part of the information seized in Pakistan described reconnaissance carried out before the Sept. 11 attacks, officials said. The documents do not indicate who wrote the detailed descriptions of security arrangements at the financial buildings or whether the surveillance was conducted for a current operation or was part of preparations for a plan that was later set aside. "
"Federal authorities said on Monday that they had uncovered no evidence that any of the surveillance activities described in the documents was currently under way. They said officials in New Jersey had been mistaken in saying on Sunday that some suspects had been found with blueprints and may have recently practiced "test runs'' aimed at the Prudential building in Newark."
"Senior counterterrorism and intelligence officials based in Europe said the information targeting the five buildings was developed by Qaeda operatives before Sept. 11, 2001. But a senior European counterterrorism official cautioned that "some recent information'' indicated that the buildings might remain on a list of Qaeda targets."
"Al Qaeda routinely comes up with ways to hit targets for years at a time, so it may not mean much that these buildings were first targeted more than three years ago,'' the official said."
Quotes from..............
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/03/politics/03intel.html?pagewanted=1
NYTimes subsciber site, free sign-up.
Ok, this is what I don't understand. If these terror alerts are years old, then I want to know under which presidency this occured. Everyone is screaming at Bush. And while I understand he is to blame for a lot of things, what about Clinton who was in office for 8 YEARS prior to Bush? Bush was only president for 9 months when 9/11 happened (and yes I am aware that Sr. was in office 12 years before Jr., but we still had someone else running the show for 8 years). Wouldn't Clinton or his office known ANYTHING about what might/did happen? Why doesn't he have any questions to answer? And I also wonder if 9/11 would have happened had Gore been president. Any ideas?
"Everyone is screaming at Bush. And while I understand he is to blame for a lot of things, what about Clinton who was in office for 8 YEARS prior to Bush?"
I don't think everyone is screaming at Bush. People want to know how to prevent another tragedy. We/I can only hope genuine steps are taken & that fear not exploited by politicians.
The link below leads to a thread about the released 9/11 commission's report.
"Panel faults 'failure of imagination"..."
http://messageboards.ivillage.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=iv-elinthenews&msg=6911.1&ctx=128
Here's a link to the actual report.....
http://www.9-11commission.gov/
with the following contents
Complete 9/11 Commission Report
7.4 MB
Executive Summary
5.9 MB
Public Statement by the Chair and Vice Chair Regarding the Report
36 KB
Contents, List of Illustrations and Tables, Members, and Staff 233 KB
Preface 67 KB
Chapter 1: "We Have Some Planes" 952 KB
Chapter 2: The Foundation of the New Terrorism 1.44 MB
Chapter 3: Counterterrorism Evolves 188 KB
Chapter 4: Responses to al Qaeda's Initial Assaults 185 KB
Chapter 5: Al Qaeda Aims at the American Homeland 312 KB
Chapter 6: From Threat to Threat 209 KB
Chapter 7: The Attack Looms 949 KB
Chapter 8: "The System Was Blinking Red" 146 KB
Chapter 9: Heroism and Horror 2.3 MB
Chapter 10: Wartime 109 KB
Chapter 11: Foresight--and Hindsight 133 KB
Chapter 12: What to do? A Global Strategy 184 KB
Chapter 13: How to do it? A Different Way of Organizing the Government 158 KB
Appendices 109 KB
Notes 669 KB
"The media is all over this & I personally feel they are only making matters worse."
ITA! Fear, paranoia leads to more stress in people's lives. You're much better off keeping a cool head.
Heard this morning the Statue Of Liberty is being re-opened today for the first time since 9/11. This is a positive.
Look I am not saying that Al Queada is at all right for wanting to do this to us, but I am not saying that we, as Americans, didn't do something to SEVERLY TICK THEM OFF! I mean it's not like they are doing this for the FUN OF IT! Something has been going on for years way up high that WE apparently don't get to know about. They are finally fed up and going to war and this is how they go to war.. The bottom line is, they are people just like us...They want to be happy like us, they want to live like us, and a lot of them are fighting for what they believe in JUST LIKE WE DO!
I love being an individual with an opinion! That is part of being an American, but I almost can't stand to see us defend something we are destroying.. In another 100 yrs will we have any 'country' left or will it all be buildings and artificial oxygen.. I mean when you have to gas up at night to cut down on polution.. Mow your lawn in the evening! Animal extinction! We are destroying America because of Money.. Over there.. they get that.. and they are just speeding up the process for us.. I hope we as Americans have a change of heart in turn maybe putting out the fire we helped ignite over there.. and then we won't have to worry about terrorist attacks..
Here we are worried about a few buildings that we have the money to rebuild.. but we destroyed an entire country and guess who is paying to rebuild that.. WE ARE! First we burn it down now we have to rebuild it.. What was the point.. To cut of your nose to spite your face. So in the long run they would just be damaging themselves.. since America is so 'RICH'.. since I have to help pay for the recovery of their country..
I thought all men are created equal.. So do we think we are smarter and superior to other countries.. last time I checked half of what we have is from another country.. and I was also under the impression that we are all made out of the same elements.. So why wouldn't we FEEL or THINK the same.. We aren't dealing with chimpanzees here.. These are PEOPLE!!
This could go either way.. all we can do is hope and pray the people that are high up there.. get a conscience.. and get smart themselves
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