WASHINGTON — Citing "specific intelligence" that had been corroborated by multiple sources, top administration officials Friday said the chances of a terrorist attack against Americans here and abroad had increased substantially and they urged the country to be on heightened alert.
The decision to upgrade the nation's alert system to "code orange," indicating a "high risk" of a terrorist strike, comes as the United States is veering toward war in Iraq.
But law enforcement and intelligence officials insisted that the looming conflict did not drive their decision. Rather, they said, it was motivated by a confluence of troubling intelligence received about the Al Qaeda network in recent weeks, and its continuing desire to attack U.S. citizens.
Atty. General John Ashcroft, who was joined at a news conference by Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge and FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III, said recent intelligence reports indicate an increased likelihood that an attack will occur "in or around the end of" the annual Muslim pilgrimage to the holy Saudi city of Mecca, known as hajj. The five-day pilgrimage, which begins this weekend, involves the global travel of hundreds of thousands of Muslims, and authorities said they feared some Al Qaeda members could try to hide their movements amid the sheer numbers of traveling Muslims.
Ashcroft, Ridge and Mueller and other authorities declined to disclose any specifics about the method, timing or location of a possible attack.
One senior counter-terrorism official said at least one intercepted communication mentioned attacks on New York and Washington, "but that is always the case. It was nothing specific." The official said: "What is unique about this is that you have a lot of different [intelligence] from a lot of different sources, all talking about attacks in the U.S. and elsewhere, during the same time frame."
Ashcroft, meanwhile, cited recent reports suggesting that Al Qaeda leaders have emphasized planning for attacks on apartment buildings, hotels and other "soft or lightly secured targets." He said there appeared to be renewed interest in carrying out chemical, biological and radioactive attacks, officials believe, in part based on recent arrests in London, where the deadly poison ricin was found.
"Historically, the intelligence community has indicated that Al Qaeda might also seek economic targets, including the transportation and energy sectors, as well as symbolic targets and symbols of American power," Ashcroft said.
