US girds for al-Qaeda truck bomb attacks

The United States has warned the Philippines that al-Qaeda terrorists might launch truck bomb attacks on US targets around the world to mark the anniversary of the terror attacks in New York and Washington.

In an "urgent" message to President Arroyo and Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople, Ambassador to Washington Albert del Rosario said he got an "urgent phone call" from US Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly informing him of the threat.

"Intelligence evaluation indicates that al-Qaeda operatives are prepared to launch truck bomb attacks and they are in possession of several tons of ammonium nitrate ," Del Rosario said in his report. Ammonium nitrate is a fertilizer that can be used as an explosive material.

"American intelligence evaluation indicates imminent threats to US embassies," Del Rosario reported, adding that the "intelligence community considers the information credible."

Kelly was "instructed to contact Southeast Asian ambassadors and share information with them on security and intelligence matters," Del Rosario said.

He said the intelligence community also "assesses an al-Qaeda attack if not on Sept. 11 itself, then at a later date depending on existing US security measures."

"The growing number of surveillance in the US and around the world indicates that al-Qaeda is focused not only in Southeast Asia," he said.

Ople, who is in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly meeting, had recommended that Mrs. Arroyo to convene the crisis oversight committee to discuss the situation in the light of the new US intelligence warning.

In Manila, some lawmakers had cautioned Mrs. Arroyo against supporting a possible US war against Iraq, fearing it might give terrorists a reason to launch attacks in the country.

At a press conference yesterday, Mrs. Arroyo said reiterated "our desire for a peaceful solution" to the latest standoff between Washington and Baghdad.

She said Tuesday the Philippines was "not committed to any war" against Iraq although Manila supports the US-led worldwide war on terror.

Explaining her earlier offer to open Philippine air space and facilities for use by the anti-terrorist coalition, Mrs. Arroyo said the country is bound by a United Nations resolution to fight terrorism issued last year shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks.

She said she would use her memorandum order outlining her government’s policy on terrorism in deciding the country’s position in case the US attacks Iraq.

"Consistent with the Philippine Constitution and other laws, the government is prepared to participate in the international struggle to prevent and suppress terroristic acts," her order, issued on Oct. 12, 2001, stated.

"The impact of our involvement in the war against terrorism will not be measured by our contributions to the international coalition alone. To a greater degree, it will be measured by our own achievements in defeating terrorism in our own territorial boundaries."

The United States steeled itself against possible terrorist attacks against US interests abroad, meanwhile, after Washington raised a terror alert to its second highest level, based on the new intelligence warning.

US President George W. Bush approved raising the level from a "significant risk" of attacks or code yellow to a "high danger" or code orange. It is the highest alert level imposed since the system was established in March.

The warning came after US Attorney General John Ashcroft announced that US intelligence had uncovered the first specific threats against US interests abroad and less credible information that terrorists might attack America again.

"US intelligence has concluded that lower-level al-Qaeda operatives may view the Sept. 11 anniversary as a suitable time to lash out in even small strikes to demonstrate their worldwide presence and resolve," Ashcroft said. "Widely dispersed, unsophisticated strikes are possible."

The intelligence community believes the most likely targets at home and abroad are transportation and energy facilities or other symbols of US power, such as military facilities, embassies and national monuments, Ashcroft said.

US officials took little comfort in the fact that the threats focused on overseas targets; a similar pattern was detected just before the Sept. 11 attacks, they said.

Among the 15 or so US diplomatic posts closed overseas, the embassy in Jakarta and a consular office in Surabaya, both in Indonesia, were shut down due to what officials called credible and specific information about security threats.

Although the US Embassy in Manila remained open, crack Special Action Force police officers, backed by a machinegun-armed Humvee military jeep, guarded the mission.

"Any decision to temporarily close the US Embassy in Manila will depend on the current situation and will be up to Ambassador [Francis] Ricciardone," Del Rosario’s message stated.

Despite no evidence of a plot against America, the Sept. 11 anniversary and threats of attacks against US interests abroad made officials jittery enough to seek the higher alert status.

A grim-faced Ashcroft said US intelligence, based on information from a senior al-Qaeda operative in the last day or so, believes terrorists operating in several South Asian countries hope to explode car bombs or launch other attacks on US facilities abroad.

The plans are believed to be linked directly to al-Qaeda, rather than one of its affiliates, said a government official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The al-Qaeda operative who provided some of the information has been in the custody of an unidentified foreign country for several months, but he has not been publicly identified.

Ashcroft said the government also has learned of plans in the Middle East to launch one or more suicide attacks against US interests. "At this time, we have no specific information as to where these attacks might occur," Ashcroft said.

The State Department issued a notice of "worldwide caution" to Americans abroad.

US military bases worldwide were put on higher alert this week because of the Sept. 11 anniversary, and the military resumed 24-hour fighter plane patrols over New York City and Washington.

Security precautions in the US capital were expected to rival measures taken immediately after last year’s attacks. Vice President Dick Cheney canceled a Tuesday night speech and was taken to a secret location to protect the presidential line of succession in case of an attack.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld ordered live anti-aircraft missiles to be stationed near launchers that had been deployed around Washington for a training exercise.

Bush planned to travel Wednesday under extraordinarily tight security to the sites of last year’s attacks at the Pentagon, in New York City and in southwestern Pennsylvania. The Secret Service bolstered security around the White House, paying special attention to vehicles on a nearby road recently closed to trucks.