Jittery US on high alert for July 4 terror strikes

4 Jul, 2002 10:30 AM5 mins to read

WASHINGTON - Military jets were patrolling United States skies as part of unprecedented security to protect Americans as they celebrated Independence Day nervous about fresh attacks after September 11.

The tighter security included an increased police and FBI presence nationwide, the monitoring of more than 2000 large events around the country and a network of cameras focused on the National Mall in Washington DC, where hundreds of thousands typically watch a fireworks display.

President George W. Bush urged Americans to celebrate the July 4 holiday "heartily", despite fears inspired by last year's attacks on New York and Washington that killed about 3000 people and shredded many Americans' sense of security.

"I hope every American goes out and gives thanks for the many blessings of our nation," Bush said, describing the Independence Day holiday as "the day we celebrate the fantastic freedom we love in America".

The White House said it had no specific information that attacks were planned but acknowledged that US intelligence agencies had for some time been picking up increased "chatter" in the system that might be cause for worry.

The FBI issued a "very vague" alert warning that people with ties to terrorist groups are downloading images of US stadiums from the internet, an agency official said yesterday.

The intelligence bulletin was sent in recent days to law-enforcement agencies nationwide.

"There's no specific threat," said Bill Eubanks, head of the FBI's St. Louis office. "They just simply accessed the website."

Images downloaded from www.worldstadiums.com. included the Edward Jones Dome, home to the NFL's St. Louis Rams, and Indianapolis' RCA Dome.

"The American people should celebrate," said White House spokesman Ari Fleischer. "Law enforcement will be on hand to do the worrying and to do the watching." He rejected a suggestion that the White House might be putting people at risk by encouraging them to attend public celebrations. "We don't let the terrorists win by cancelling America's holidays."

Another spokesman said: "Al Qaeda hasn't historically picked significant dates to the US for conducting operations; they tend to conduct operations when they are ready."

Among the tighter July 4 security precautions, the White House said US military combat air patrols would fly over selected cities - which officials declined to identify - as well as over large swathes of the nation.

The military flew round-the-clock patrols over major cities for months after September 11 to foil hijacked-plane attacks like those on New York and Washington. The patrols were halted several months ago but have since resumed on an intermittent basis.

The White House Office of Homeland Security, set up after the attacks, planned to have an emergency co-ordination centre running to monitor more than 2000 medium- to-large gatherings around the nation and to keep in touch with officials on the ground.

America's capital, viewed as one of the highest-risk potential targets, was deploying 2000 uniformed officers as well as a newly installed network of cameras to monitor the National Mall, the vast green space where hundreds of thousands gather each year to watch a spectacular Independence Day fireworks display.

As at many sites around the country, visitors were to be funnelled through security check points, with packages and backpacks screened for dangerous items such as firearms, explosives and even glass bottles.

Bush planned to divide the holiday between the hamlet of Ripley, West Virginia, where he was to launch the town's annual Main Street parade, and the White House, where he was expected to view the fireworks from the mansion's Truman balcony.

Mohamed El Filali, from New Jersey, said he would not go anywhere near a fireworks display to celebrate the day. Like many other Muslims, he was keeping a low profile, avoiding large crowds where they feared they could be mistaken for terrorists by edgy law enforcement officers or suspicious citizens.

"As a Muslim, especially during this specific holiday, I have a concern of being racially profiled by the police and the federal agents," said El Filali, an official with the American Muslim Union.

Ra'id Faraj, a spokesman for the Council on Islamic-American Relations of Southern California, said Muslims did not want people to think they could be terrorists on a holiday that "means so much to all Americans, including Muslims".

Aysha Mirza, a Rutgers University student, said she planned to watch the fireworks.

"Anyone who covers and wears hijab and is Muslim-looking, I can understand that they would be scared. But my loyalty to this country and my patriotism is not something to be questioned."

On the eve of Independence Day in London, Britain's mass-selling left-of-centre Daily Mirror headlined an article by Australian journalist John Pilger "Mourn on the Fourth of July".

Pilger, a British-based award-winning journalist and documentary film-maker, accused Bush of undermining international law by his policy of "shoot and bomb first, and find out later" in Afghanistan.

American bombs had claimed more Afghan civilian lives than those lost in the World Trade Centre.

The US "now qualifies as the world's leading rogue state" given the "systematic, murderous way the US military has operated in Afghanistan", he wrote.

Pilger quoted a study by the University of New Hampshire in the US saying that at least 3767 civilians were killed by US bombs between last October 7 and December 10, an average of 62 a day. This was now estimated to have passed 5000 civilian deaths.

Pilger also questioned Washington's true motive behind its military interventions in Afghanistan.

"Potential vast energy resources in Central Asia have become critical for the deeply troubled US economy, and for the Bush Administration, which is dominated by oil industry interests, notably the Bush family itself," he wrote.

- AGENCIES

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