Terror alert high for tomorrow

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Counterintelligence authorities in the United States, Europe and Israel have been bracing for a new al-Qaida terrorist offensive ever since the foiling of shoe bomber Richard Reid's pre-Christmas attempt to blow up an American Airlines Paris-to-Miami flight.

The feared general assault failed to materialize on any of the expected dates. But DEBKA-Net-Weekly sources maintain it has begun nevertheless – not with a deafening bang, but under tight wraps. Between five and eight al-Qaida terror squads are reported making their winding way to their targets, after setting out from four secret bases in Iran, Yemen, Pakistan and the Kyrgyz side of the Ferghana Valley.

The terror squads are ignorant of their objectives, blindly accepting the dictates of the tightly compartmentalized organization they are part of. Some sources say they are heading for a spectacular strike in a West European city or else a simultaneous multi-pronged assault in several urban centers in Europe and the Middle East. Possible targets are London, Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Rome and Madrid.

One or two of the teams are heading for one of Israel's main cities – Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Ashdod or Beersheba.

The two squads from Yemen and the Ferghana Valley are making for Larnaca or Paphos in the Greek sector of Cyprus, or for Beirut, Lebanon, where they may be plotting a showcase attack at the Arab summit convening there March 27. Saudi Arabia's crown prince Abdullah and most of the leaders of the Gulf states will be in attendance.

There is no firm information about any of the al-Qaida squads planning to reach American shores. But DEBKA anti-terror experts say some of the militants may be laying false trails to hoodwink intelligence and counter-terror watchers, especially U.S. agencies, while their comrades slip into the United States unnoticed.

DEBKA sources say the FBI, which published an extraordinary national terror alert for Feb. 15, is now focusing on Saturday, Feb. 23, as a date for possible terrorist attacks. The 23rd marks the anniversary of Osama bin Laden's 1998 fatwa prescribing the duty of all Muslim believers to martyr themselves in the war against America. On exactly the same date, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein proclaimed a new annual national anti-American holiday called Freedom Day.

The date could conceivably attract terrorist action in the United States, because the Winter Olympics Games break up at Salt Lake City the next day, Sunday, Feb. 24. As the athletes prepare to leave for home, the U.S. Secret Service, which is in charge of security, may be expected to let its guard down, making it easier for terrorists to move in to strike.