WASHINGTON -- Al Qaeda can be expected to attempt an attack on the United States in the next three to six months, senior U.S. intelligence officials told Congress Tuesday.
The terrorist organization is deploying operatives to the United States to carry out new attacks from inside the country, including "clean" recruits with a negligible trail of terrorist contacts, CIA Director Leon Panetta said. Al Qaeda is also inspiring homegrown extremists to trigger violence on their own, Panetta added.
The annual assessment of the nation's terror threats provided no startling new terror trends, but amplified growing concerns since the Christmas Day airline attack in Detroit that militants are growing harder to detect and moving more quickly in their plots.
"The biggest threat is not so much that we face an attack like 9/11. It is that Al Qaeda is adapting its methods in ways that oftentimes make it difficult to detect," Panetta told the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Al Qaeda is increasingly relying on new recruits with minimal training and simple devices to carry out attacks, the CIA chief said as part of the annual assessment of national threats provided to Congress by the top five U.S. intelligence officials.
Panetta also warned of the danger of extremists acting alone: "It's the lone-wolf strategy that I think we have to pay attention to as the main threat to this country," he said.
The hearing comes just over a month since a failed attempt to bring down an airliner in Detroit by a Nigerian suspect. And the assessment follows only a few months since U.S. Army Maj. Nidal Hassan is accused of single-handedly attacking his fellow soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 13.
Director of National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair described Hassan as homegrown extremist. He also said that Al Qaeda can be expected to continue and try to attack the United States until Osama bin Laden and his No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahri, are dead.
The U.S. still does not know the intended targets of suspected terrorist Najibullah Zazi, who was arrested in September and charged with plotting to attack New York City with homemade bombs, Blair said.
Blair warned as well of a growing cyber threat, saying computer-related attacks have become dynamic and malicious.
Obama has promised to make cyber security a priority in his administration, but the president's new budget asks for a decrease in funds for the Homeland Security Department's cybersecurity division.
The government's first quadrennial homeland security review states high consequence and large-scale cyberattacks could massively disable or hurt international financial, commercial and physical infrastructure.
The report, obtained by The Associated Press, said these types of cyberattacks could cripple the movement of people and goods around the world and bring vital social and economic programs to a halt.
Source:
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
It's easy! Monitor phone calls from convenience stores across America, and we will get plenty of details & names.
ReplyDeletethey attacked last nov. and won. or rather this country was handed to them and their bro's.
ReplyDeleteLets keep giving these kind people tax free incentive to come to our country and start a business....I think at some point they will all blow up all the convenience stores at once
ReplyDeleteFt Hood was a terrorist attack and we let this go as a typical event in our society now a days because its America. If my grandfather were alive, who fought for our country he would be pissed the bleep off over this complacent ass kissing country we live in now.
ReplyDeleteScrew the civil liberties fanatics and start wiretapping suspects! Stop letting these arabs into our country. Racial profiling is needed in these cases for the security of our country. If they have nothing to hide then they should have nothing to worry about.
ReplyDeleteSorry racial profiling will not stop them. Al Qaeda has already said the next wave will be by blonde hair blue eyed people. Profile that, and transportation will grind to a halt.
ReplyDelete9:36
ReplyDeleteYou bring up a good point. They come here and are given everything. How can they NOT pay taxes yet our own citizens have to pay taxes. After 7 years they just turn the business over to another relative. It should be HARDER for them to come here and start a business than the people that have lived worked and paid taxes for years.
so the same freedoms promised to all our ancestors that came to this country should now be suspended? The 99.99% that come here to better their life should suffer because of that small possibility? That's not America, people.
ReplyDeleteOur government spends trillions of dollars a year on national security while our local police and schools go under-funded. Robberies and murders in our own communities go unsolved and repeat offenders are let out on parole every day. Those are the true travesties.
Rob S
Harder to detect???? You're saying that when multiple psychologists say that Hassan was a threat and were not listened to that we were not warned??? That when the Christmas day bomber's own father reported that his son was shopping Al Qaeda and following them that we just didn't know??? That this is due to sneakiness on their part???
ReplyDeleteCan Homeland Security get any dumber??
Bring the boys home and put them on the border.
It's too late now , with obama on their side!
ReplyDelete10:14, another illogical idealogue. Have you not seen that these guys are recruiting the average Joe (both whites and blacks) as well as "arabs" to their cause?
ReplyDeleteyea 7:02......look at the videos of the terror training camps and see how many blonde haired bue eyed terrorists you see. None. Typical psyops manuever. instill fear in the enemy. This will enable the government to justify to the masses an all out assault on American militia groups who take up arms to defend their country
ReplyDeleteI'm sure the CIA knows exactly when they intend to attack next.
ReplyDeleteThey being the terrorists of course.
I mean, the foreign terrorists.
The Jihadists terrorists.
You know, the ones who don't work for the CIA.
You know what I mean.
8:24
ReplyDeleteLet me guess, you think the CIA was behind the 911 attack. In the words of Bob Dylan..."you take your paranoia too seriously".
& why did we need an intelligence official to warn us of this? Did everyone forget Ft Hood? The Christmas day attempted bombing? "WTF" to coin a phrase.
ReplyDeleteWeve been under attack and its going to keep happening because Al Qaeda and the rest of the crazies want to die. Their goal is to damage our country in anyway they can so they can reach their Allah. & government forbid if we tourture them or disrespect their culture in anyway. THeyre just blowing our country up and killing our brothers, sisters, mothers, & fathers. No biggie cause its just the US citizen who has less rights in this country then a terrorist.
Makes me glad i pay taxes to pay the salleries of these elected officials who could give a damn about my rights.
Well, racial profiling certainly could have prevented 911 just as surely as it could have been used to predict KKK activities in the past! If a certain racial, religious or political group is perpetrating 98% percent of a certain type of violence, it is NOT unreasonable to give extra attention to of members of that group!
ReplyDeleteTAL