Al Qaeda planning Miami attack for Bush-Kerry debate?
BLOOMBERG NEWS
U.S. law enforcement agencies warned authorities in Miami that the al Qaeda terrorist organization might try to attack during the first presidential debate tomorrow, a government spokeswoman said.
The advisory by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security cited no specific intelligence that al-Qaeda was preparing to attack Miami, where President George W. Bush and Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry are scheduled to debate, said Katy Mynster, deputy press secretary for Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.
“Although we continue to remain concerned about al-Qaeda’s desire to disrupt our democratic process, there is no information that terrorists are planning to attack this debate,” Mynster said. The debate is scheduled for 9 p.m. Miami time.
Local law enforcement agencies in Florida were advised about securing airports, harbors and other locations based on information about past al-Qaeda attacks and techniques, she said.
“The information bulletins and advisories are simply to provide information that could be helpful to law enforcement if they are developing their security plans,” Mynster said.
“There is nothing specific,” she said. “We know that al-Qaeda has been interested in soft targets.” The Wall Street Journal reported that the advisory warned of the need to safeguard a chemical plant in the port of Miami, the Miami branch of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, the Four Seasons Hotel and Tower, the Kennedy Space Center and Disney World near Orlando.
Ridge warned in April that al-Qaeda was seeking to wage a terrorist attack on the U.S. to try to disrupt the presidential election. Bush, 58, and Kerry, 60, a four-term senator from Massachusetts, are also scheduled to debate Oct. 8 in St. Louis and Oct. 13 in Tempe, Arizona.
Vice President Dick Cheney and North Carolina Senator John Edwards, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, are scheduled to debate Oct. 5 in Cleveland.
Originally published on September 29, 2004
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/breaking_news/story/236962p-203453c.html