An international conference of military surgeons in South Africa today heard a warning that millions could die in the next terrorist attack and that the U.S. is ill prepared for the threat of nuclear, biological and chemical attacks.

Nearly four years after Sept. 11, 2001, the medical world remains unprepared for a terrorist attack that could make the memory of that disaster pale by comparison, Professor Chris Kaufman, a retired U.S. Army surgeon, told the conference, "Conflicts of the 21st Century: What to Expect."

The assessment also represented the consensus among those from around the world who gathered in Durban for the 41st World Congress of Surgery.

"We pray we'll never see another attack of this scale, or worse, in our lifetime, but we'd be failing in our duties if we didn't prepare for one," said Dr. Kaufman. 'We pray we'll never see another attack of this scale. Millions, even tens of millions, could die in an attack employing a nuclear device or biological agent, like anthrax or smallpox.

Kaufmann said it was unlikely current stocks of medicines would be sufficient in the event of a large-scale bio-terrorism attack.

For example, he pointed out, there were only 7 million units of smallpox vaccine available for the entire U.S.

It was just the latest warning of the potential for terrorist attacks using weapons of mass destruction.

Last week, WND reported the manufacturer of a new anti-radiation drug says the federal government is dragging its feet on a program meant to provide billions of dollars in help with WMD-related medications, while most Americans sit defenseless in the event of a terrorist nuke strike officials say is inevitable.

Though a nuclear terrorist attack on U.S. soil has been characterized by officials as high up as Vice President Cheney as a matter of "when" and not "if," there exists few government measures to protect Americans from the effects of radiation after a nuke is detonated.

As WND has reported, for more than 10 years, al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden has planned to use nuclear weapons in a terrorist attack on the U.S. The plan is dubbed "American Hiroshima." In fact, as first reported in Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, captured al-Qaida operatives and documents suggest the weapons have already been smuggled into the country.

Intelligence analysts and sources disagree on the details of the way bin Laden's "American Hiroshima" plan unfolds. Some G2 Bulletin sources emphasize bin Laden's commitment to re-enacting the 1945 attack on Japan with one nuclear detonation, followed by another days later.

Paul Williams in his upcoming book, "The Al Qaeda Connection," however, sees a much more devastating, coordinated, all-out, surprise attack coming.

For continuing and complete coverage of the nuclear terrorist threat, subscribe to Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, the premium, online, intelligence newsletter edited by the founder of WND.

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