First there is this article:
Washington Post
July 30, 2003
Pg. 1
Memo Warns Of New Plots To Hijack Jets
By Sara Kehaulani Goo and Susan Schmidt, Washington Post Staff Writers
Terrorists operating in teams of five may be plotting suicide missions to hijack commercial airliners on the East Coast, Europe or Australia this summer possibly using "common items carried by travelers, such as cameras, modified as weapons," according to an urgent memo sent last weekend to all U.S. airlines and airport security managers.
The "information circular" issued July 26 was drawn from recent intelligence reports that detail the most specific terrorist plots involving passenger aircraft in the United States since four hijacked jetliners were used in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, crashing into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in western Pennsylvania.
"The plan may involve the use of five-man teams, each of which would attempt to seize control of a commercial aircraft either shortly after takeoff or shortly before landing at a chosen airport," the Transportation Security Administration memo said. "This type of operation would preclude the need for flight-trained hijackers."
The threat comes just as the federal government has started to trim the nation's new airport security agency, by cutting the number of security screeners and other resources. Just one day before the memo was distributed, an official with the undercover Federal Air Marshal Service canceled what are considered some of the most vulnerable flight missions because they required marshals to spend nights in hotels, as well as cutting training for Washington-area agents next month. The official cited "monetary considerations," according to an e-mail obtained by The Washington Post.
Government officials have detected many threats of possible terrorist attacks on the United States and abroad, raising the nation's "threat level" as recently as May after suicide bombings in Riyadh, but no incidents have since occurred.
President Bush was briefed on the hijack threat yesterday by CIA Director George J. Tenet in a meeting attended by national security advisers and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. Officials said that the information came from one or more high-ranking al Qaeda prisoners and has been corroborated by other intelligence; the circular specifically cites "Islamic extremists" as the planners of the possible attacks.
"We continue to assess the credibility of this information while taking additional steps to plug any gaps that may be in our aviation security system," said Homeland Security Department spokesman Gordon Johndroe.
The Transportation Security Administration declined to comment on air marshal operations. Spokesman Robert Johnson said the undercover program is "is not exempt from budget realities facing the TSA."
While the information disseminated to the airlines is unusually specific, the intelligence community remains somewhat wary that the alleged hijacking plot could be a feint by al Qaeda to divert attention from a real threat elsewhere.
"That possibility is something we are looking at right now," a Homeland Security Department official said. But, he said, the threat to airliners "is consistent with previous al Qaeda methods of returning to previous places of attacks" after taking time to size up altered security.
In response to the airline threat, the department directed U.S. airlines Monday to cooperate with additional screening procedures that will begin immediately for certain international travelers to the United States who do not have U.S. visas, according to people familiar with the document. It was not clear what the new scrutiny entails.
A source familiar with the document said airlines are being asked to provide additional scrutiny at originating airports outside the United States of certain non-citizens traveling to American airports and connecting to other international destinations. "It's the most specific I've seen since we entered this new world" after the 2001 hijackings, the source said. "It's very clear to me they're taking it very, very seriously."
More than 361,000 people fit that category last year. They are people who, for example, fly from Rio de Janeiro to London with a layover in Miami, and typically do not need a U.S. visa because they are simply passing through. In such instances, travelers are directed on arrival to remain in a secure lounge during the layover.
The July 26 memo suggests that terrorists plan to exploit this visa loophole and evade authorities by taking a flight from a foreign country with less-stringent security to a U.S., European or Australian airport and then plan to hijack a second, connecting flight. "The consideration of airports in the United States, Australia and several western countries suggests the planners believe current aviation security measures can either be defeated or will not detect the hijackers and/or their weapons," the memo said.
New York's John F. Kennedy International, Newark International, Miami International, Chicago's O'Hare International, Hart Field International in Atlanta, San Francisco International, and Los Angeles International airports typically handle the most connecting international travelers.
Washington's Dulles International Airport has a secure lounge, but does not have international connecting flights. Baltimore-Washington International and Reagan National airports require visas on arriving international flights.
James May, chief executive of the Air Transport Association, which represents U.S. airlines, declined to comment on new security procedures.
Homeland Security Department officials have not raised the government's threat index, which requires stepped-up measures by local, state and federal officials throughout the country, in part, they said, because the current threat is narrowly focused on airlines. The aviation industry can increase security without the disruption of putting the entire country on high alert, one official said.
Then there is this one
U.S. May Cut Air Marshals Despite Warning
2 hours, 4 minutes ago
By LESLIE MILLER, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - The Transportation Security Administration wants to reduce the number of air marshals to save money, even as the government is warning about the possibility al-Qaida may try more suicide hijackings.
The TSA is seeking approval from Congress to cut $104 million from the air marshal program to help offset a $900 million budget shortfall. It's unclear how many of the estimated several thousand air marshal jobs would be affected.
"When we are faced with more priorities than we have funding to support, we have to go through a process of trying to address the most urgent needs," TSA spokesman Robert Johnson said.
News of the air marshal program cutbacks come as the Department of Homeland Security is warning of the possibility of hijackings.
A copy of the advisory, obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, suggests an attack could take place by the end of the summer. The warning said terrorists may use five-man teams to take over airplanes just after takeoff or before landing and crash them into buildings.
"The hijackers may try to calm passengers and make them believe they were on a hostage, not suicide, mission," said the warning, which was distributed over the weekend to airlines and law enforcement agencies said. "The hijackers may attempt to use common items carried by travelers, such as cameras, modified as weapons."
It suggested cities on the East Coast, in the United Kingdom, Italy and Australia as possible targets.
"No equipment or operatives are known to have been deployed to conduct the operations," the warning said.
Officials said the credibility of the threat was still being evaluated. But they noted there was no precise information on when or where such an attack could take place.
The national terrorist threat level remained at yellow, signifying an elevated risk of attacks. The five-level, color-coded system was last raised to orange, or high risk, for 11 days in May. Officials said they did not plan to raise it to reflect the possibility of suicide hijackings.
Some complained the government still was doing too little to alert the public and key industries to terror threats.
"Our concern is that there will be bulletins put out that will not be made available to us," said Capt. Jon Safley, president of the Coalition of Airline Pilots Association, a pilots union. Safley, who doesn't fly, said he hasn't been getting warnings and wasn't sure all pilots know when advisories pertaining to air travel are issued.
Jim Schwartz, director of emergency management for Arlington County, Va., which includes both Ronald Reagan (news - web sites) Washington National Airport and the Pentagon (news - web sites), said his agency had received no warning from Homeland Security. He said he would need more specifics before increasing security based on published reports.
The warning was based on information gleaned from interviews of at least one al-Qaida prisoner as well as intercepted communications, said one intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity. The information was developed in the past several weeks.
"Cognizant of changes in aviation security measures since Sept. 11, 2001, al-Qaida is looking for new ways to circumvent enhancements in aviation security screening and tightening immigration requirements," the warning said.
Homeland Security Department placed a statement on its Web site saying the advisory was transmitted after U.S. intelligence-gatherers "received information that al-Qaida continues to be interested in using the commercial aviation system in the United States and abroad to further their cause."
In response to the advisory, the State Department on Tuesday revised an existing caution for American travelers to reflect the perceived hijacking threat.
"Terrorist actions may include, but are not limited to, suicide operations, hijackings, bombings or kidnappings. These may also involve commercial aircraft," the revised statement said.
What's Wrong With This Picture?
Washington Post
July 30, 2003
Pg. 1
Memo Warns Of New Plots To Hijack Jets
By Sara Kehaulani Goo and Susan Schmidt, Washington Post Staff Writers
Terrorists operating in teams of five may be plotting suicide missions to hijack commercial airliners on the East Coast, Europe or Australia this summer possibly using "common items carried by travelers, such as cameras, modified as weapons," according to an urgent memo sent last weekend to all U.S. airlines and airport security managers.
The "information circular" issued July 26 was drawn from recent intelligence reports that detail the most specific terrorist plots involving passenger aircraft in the United States since four hijacked jetliners were used in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, crashing into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in western Pennsylvania.
"The plan may involve the use of five-man teams, each of which would attempt to seize control of a commercial aircraft either shortly after takeoff or shortly before landing at a chosen airport," the Transportation Security Administration memo said. "This type of operation would preclude the need for flight-trained hijackers."
The threat comes just as the federal government has started to trim the nation's new airport security agency, by cutting the number of security screeners and other resources. Just one day before the memo was distributed, an official with the undercover Federal Air Marshal Service canceled what are considered some of the most vulnerable flight missions because they required marshals to spend nights in hotels, as well as cutting training for Washington-area agents next month. The official cited "monetary considerations," according to an e-mail obtained by The Washington Post.
Government officials have detected many threats of possible terrorist attacks on the United States and abroad, raising the nation's "threat level" as recently as May after suicide bombings in Riyadh, but no incidents have since occurred.
President Bush was briefed on the hijack threat yesterday by CIA Director George J. Tenet in a meeting attended by national security advisers and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. Officials said that the information came from one or more high-ranking al Qaeda prisoners and has been corroborated by other intelligence; the circular specifically cites "Islamic extremists" as the planners of the possible attacks.
"We continue to assess the credibility of this information while taking additional steps to plug any gaps that may be in our aviation security system," said Homeland Security Department spokesman Gordon Johndroe.
The Transportation Security Administration declined to comment on air marshal operations. Spokesman Robert Johnson said the undercover program is "is not exempt from budget realities facing the TSA."
While the information disseminated to the airlines is unusually specific, the intelligence community remains somewhat wary that the alleged hijacking plot could be a feint by al Qaeda to divert attention from a real threat elsewhere.
"That possibility is something we are looking at right now," a Homeland Security Department official said. But, he said, the threat to airliners "is consistent with previous al Qaeda methods of returning to previous places of attacks" after taking time to size up altered security.
In response to the airline threat, the department directed U.S. airlines Monday to cooperate with additional screening procedures that will begin immediately for certain international travelers to the United States who do not have U.S. visas, according to people familiar with the document. It was not clear what the new scrutiny entails.
A source familiar with the document said airlines are being asked to provide additional scrutiny at originating airports outside the United States of certain non-citizens traveling to American airports and connecting to other international destinations. "It's the most specific I've seen since we entered this new world" after the 2001 hijackings, the source said. "It's very clear to me they're taking it very, very seriously."
More than 361,000 people fit that category last year. They are people who, for example, fly from Rio de Janeiro to London with a layover in Miami, and typically do not need a U.S. visa because they are simply passing through. In such instances, travelers are directed on arrival to remain in a secure lounge during the layover.
The July 26 memo suggests that terrorists plan to exploit this visa loophole and evade authorities by taking a flight from a foreign country with less-stringent security to a U.S., European or Australian airport and then plan to hijack a second, connecting flight. "The consideration of airports in the United States, Australia and several western countries suggests the planners believe current aviation security measures can either be defeated or will not detect the hijackers and/or their weapons," the memo said.
New York's John F. Kennedy International, Newark International, Miami International, Chicago's O'Hare International, Hart Field International in Atlanta, San Francisco International, and Los Angeles International airports typically handle the most connecting international travelers.
Washington's Dulles International Airport has a secure lounge, but does not have international connecting flights. Baltimore-Washington International and Reagan National airports require visas on arriving international flights.
James May, chief executive of the Air Transport Association, which represents U.S. airlines, declined to comment on new security procedures.
Homeland Security Department officials have not raised the government's threat index, which requires stepped-up measures by local, state and federal officials throughout the country, in part, they said, because the current threat is narrowly focused on airlines. The aviation industry can increase security without the disruption of putting the entire country on high alert, one official said.
Then there is this one
U.S. May Cut Air Marshals Despite Warning
2 hours, 4 minutes ago
By LESLIE MILLER, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - The Transportation Security Administration wants to reduce the number of air marshals to save money, even as the government is warning about the possibility al-Qaida may try more suicide hijackings.
The TSA is seeking approval from Congress to cut $104 million from the air marshal program to help offset a $900 million budget shortfall. It's unclear how many of the estimated several thousand air marshal jobs would be affected.
"When we are faced with more priorities than we have funding to support, we have to go through a process of trying to address the most urgent needs," TSA spokesman Robert Johnson said.
News of the air marshal program cutbacks come as the Department of Homeland Security is warning of the possibility of hijackings.
A copy of the advisory, obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, suggests an attack could take place by the end of the summer. The warning said terrorists may use five-man teams to take over airplanes just after takeoff or before landing and crash them into buildings.
"The hijackers may try to calm passengers and make them believe they were on a hostage, not suicide, mission," said the warning, which was distributed over the weekend to airlines and law enforcement agencies said. "The hijackers may attempt to use common items carried by travelers, such as cameras, modified as weapons."
It suggested cities on the East Coast, in the United Kingdom, Italy and Australia as possible targets.
"No equipment or operatives are known to have been deployed to conduct the operations," the warning said.
Officials said the credibility of the threat was still being evaluated. But they noted there was no precise information on when or where such an attack could take place.
The national terrorist threat level remained at yellow, signifying an elevated risk of attacks. The five-level, color-coded system was last raised to orange, or high risk, for 11 days in May. Officials said they did not plan to raise it to reflect the possibility of suicide hijackings.
Some complained the government still was doing too little to alert the public and key industries to terror threats.
"Our concern is that there will be bulletins put out that will not be made available to us," said Capt. Jon Safley, president of the Coalition of Airline Pilots Association, a pilots union. Safley, who doesn't fly, said he hasn't been getting warnings and wasn't sure all pilots know when advisories pertaining to air travel are issued.
Jim Schwartz, director of emergency management for Arlington County, Va., which includes both Ronald Reagan (news - web sites) Washington National Airport and the Pentagon (news - web sites), said his agency had received no warning from Homeland Security. He said he would need more specifics before increasing security based on published reports.
The warning was based on information gleaned from interviews of at least one al-Qaida prisoner as well as intercepted communications, said one intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity. The information was developed in the past several weeks.
"Cognizant of changes in aviation security measures since Sept. 11, 2001, al-Qaida is looking for new ways to circumvent enhancements in aviation security screening and tightening immigration requirements," the warning said.
Homeland Security Department placed a statement on its Web site saying the advisory was transmitted after U.S. intelligence-gatherers "received information that al-Qaida continues to be interested in using the commercial aviation system in the United States and abroad to further their cause."
In response to the advisory, the State Department on Tuesday revised an existing caution for American travelers to reflect the perceived hijacking threat.
"Terrorist actions may include, but are not limited to, suicide operations, hijackings, bombings or kidnappings. These may also involve commercial aircraft," the revised statement said.
What's Wrong With This Picture?
