Al Qaida planning US terror attack.Byline: MARK SAGE sage, any species of the large genus Salvia, aromatic herbs or shrubs of the family Labiatae (mint family). The common sage of herb gardens is S. officinalis, a strongly scented shrubby perennial, native from S Europe to Asia Minor. Al QAIDA is planning an attack on US soil ``in the next few months``,US Attorney General John Ashcroft John David Ashcroft (born May 9 1942) is an American politician who was the 79th United States Attorney General. He served during the first term of President George W. Bush from 2001 until 2005. Ashcroft was previously the Governor of Missouri (1985 – 1993) and a U.S. said yesterday. Citing ``multiple sources``, Mr Ashcroft said Osama bin Laden's terror groupmay use a series of high profile events in the coming months to launch a spectacular attack. He said at a news conference in Washington: ``Credible intelligence from multiple sources indicates that al Qaida plans to attempt an attack on the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. in the next few months. ``This disturbing intelligence indicates al Qaida's specificintention to hit the US hard.'' Pictures of seven people were shown at the news conferenceand the FBI appealed for information to find them. They were described as a ``clear and present danger'' to the US. Mr Ashcroft said: ``Just after New Year,al Qaida announced openly that preparations for an attack on the United States were 70% complete. ``After the March 11attack in Madrid,an al Qaida spokesman announced that 90% of the arrangements for an attack on the United States were complete.'' Mr Ashcroft said al Qaida believed that the Madrid train bombings, which killed nearly 200 people,had ``advanced their cause''. He said: ``Al Qaida may perceive that a large scale attack in the United States this summer or fall would lead to similar consequences.'' He said forthcoming events could prove an ``attractive target'' for terrorists. These include the G8 summit in Georgia and the political party conventions in Boston and New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . Mr Ashcroft said: ``We ask our fellow citizens to be on the lookout for in search of; looking for. See also: Lookout individuals and in specific for each of these seven individuals that are associated with al Qaida. ``They all are sought in connection with the possible terrorist threats in the United States, they allpose a clearand present danger to America, they all shouldbe considered armed and dangerous.'' The FBI has developed a 2004Threat Task Force to counter the current threat. Some 84national joint terrorism groups have been requested to gather and report more intelligence to the task force. Mr Ashcroft said the US government was seeking ``unprecedented levels of co-operationamong law-enforcement bodies'' so the US could ``act decisively to disrupt any al Qaida presence in the United States''. Mr Ashcroft insisted that America was ``winning the war on terror''. ``But we should never forget that it is a war.Fighting terrorists is a tough business.'' |
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