FBI Warns of New Attacks

As the one month anniversary of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington passed, the FBI warned the nation yesterday that new terrorist attacks against the United States may be imminent.

“Certain information, while not specific as to [the] target, gives the government reason to believe that there may be additional terrorist attacks within the United States and against U.S. interests overseas over the next several days,” the FBI said yesterday in a press release.

The bureau encouraged all individuals to immediately contact law enforcement authorities if they noticed any suspicious activities. However, President Bush urged Americans not to overreact to such warnings and to continue to go about their usual routines.

“The American people have got to go about their business,” said Bush in a press conference he held last night in the White House—the first prime-time press conference of his presidency. “I have urged our fellow Americans to go about their lives, to fly on airplanes, to travel, to go to work.”

Bush said that the FBI warning should actually comfort the American people as a sign that the federal government is alert to future terrorist plots.

“I think it is important for the American people to know their government is on full alert. And that’s what that warning showed,” Bush said.

He also assured the public that if the government became aware of threats against specific targets, steps would be taken to prevent attacks.

“If we receive...a credible threat that targets a specific building or city or facility, I can assure your our government will do everything possible to protect the citizens around, and in or near that facility,” Bush said.

As part of yesterday’s warning, the FBI asked all local law enforcement agencies to be on their highest level of alert.

A spokesperson for the Harvard University Police Department said they are aware of the warning. However, the department is already at a high state of alert, and no additional measures are planned, according to Sgt. Kevin Bryant. Campus security will be reassessed this morning if necessary.

The FBI’s alert was the second such warning to local law enforcement agencies this week. According to an FBI spokesperson, since Sept. 11 the bureau has sent five or six warnings to local police. Not all the previous warnings were made public.

Also in the past several days, the FBI has asked supervisors of public water supplies, nuclear plants operators, owners of crop dusters and drivers of hazardous waste trucks among others to increase their security to help prevent terrorism.

Bush said that he hoped yesterday’s FBI warning would be the last of its type that had to be issued. “But, given the attitude of the evildoers, it may not be,” he added.

At his press conference yesterday evening Bush also addressed the United State’s efforts to eliminate the sources of terrorism—including the current bombing campaign against Afghanistan.

“We’ve accomplished a great deal in one month,” he said. “We are dismantling their military, disrupting their communications, severing their ability to defend themselves. And slowly, but surely, we’re smoking al Qaeda out of their caves so we can bring them to justice.” But Bush indicated that the military operation may only be in its early stages.

“This particular battlefront will last as long as it takes to bring al Qaeda to justice. It may happen tomorrow; it may happen a month from now; it may take a year or two,” he said.

—The Associated Press and Garrett M. Graff contributed to the reporting of this story.

—Staff writer Daniel P. Mosteller can be reached dmostell@fas.harvard.edu.