WASHINGTON - United States intelligence agencies have issued an internal alert, warning that Muslim extremists are planning to strike again, possibly targeting a US nuclear power plant.
The Washington Times said yesterday that the warning came within the past fortnight in a classified report that listed six potential targets and methods of attack.
Citing officials familiar with the report, the newspaper said the plots outlined in the alert included a bombing or hijacked jet attack on a US nuclear facility, a bombing against an American warship in Bahrain, another hijacked airliner attack on a building and a vehicle bombing in Yemen.
The paper said the alert was based on sensitive intelligence gathered overseas. It also quoted an unnamed defence official as saying that intelligence gathered in Afghanistan had helped to foil three planned attacks.
Earlier yesterday, NBC News reported that the Space Needle, a Seattle landmark, was targeted for attack by Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network, according to evidence recovered by American troops in Afghanistan.
The report cited US officials as saying the evidence included plans to attack other targets in Washington state, including the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River, one of the world's largest hydro-electric dams and a major power source in the Pacific Northwest.
President George W. Bush outlined the newly discovered evidence against al Qaeda in his State of the Union address on Wednesday, as he warned that the war against terror was just beginning.
"Our discoveries in Afghanistan confirmed our worst fears and show us the true scope of the task ahead," Bush said. "We have found diagrams of American nuclear power plants and public water facilities, detailed instructions for making chemical weapons, surveillance maps of American cities, and thorough descriptions of landmarks in America and throughout the world."
NBC said documents found in Afghanistan also included a plot to attack the US Mint in Philadelphia and plans to blow up Los Angeles International Airport.
In a statement posted on its website yesterday, the FBI said "military action and law enforcement and intelligence activities in Afghanistan continue to uncover documents and information about al Qaeda".
The agency's executive assistant director, Dale Watson, said the information arrived in evidence boxes that included videotapes, maps, notebooks and other documents.
A CIA report, meanwhile, says the threat from terrorists using a weapon of mass destruction has increased since September 11, and extremist groups appear most interested in chemicals such as cyanide salts to contaminate food and water supplies .
Extremist groups seem to be increasing their search for weapons that could destroy large populations using chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear agents, the unclassified report to Congress said.
The semi-annual report on the acquisition of technology relating to weapons of mass destruction covered the period from January 1 to June 30 last year, but a special section dealt with the post-September 11 situation.
"The threat of terrorists using chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials appears to be rising - particularly since the 11 September attacks," the report says.
Several of the 30 foreign organisations the US has designated as terrorists have expressed interest in weapons of mass destruction, although terrorists will probably continue to favour conventional tactics such as bombings and shootings, the report says.
While extremists, including bin Laden, are seeking a nuclear weapon, there is no evidence that they have acquired one or the materials to build one, says the CIA.
Bush accused Iran, Iraq and North Korea of constituting an "axis of evil" for their alleged pursuit of weapons of mass destruction.
The CIA report, completed well before the speech, mentions all three countries, among others.
- REUTERS
Story archives:
Links: War against terrorism
Timeline: Major events since the Sept 11 attacks
Nuclear plant among terror goals
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
