War-Gaming the War on Terror

March 5, 2005 -- -- Ever since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, officials in Washington and around the world have been warning of more devastating attacks from Islamic militants.

The warnings have been backed up by horrifying incidents. More than 200 people died in a bombing in Bali, Indonesia, in October 2002. A series of bombings in Madrid in March 2004 claimed nearly 200 more lives.

When there is an attack to rival those of Sept. 11, it may not be as dramatic -- but it could be even more deadly and disruptive.

Earlier this year, bioterrorism experts brought governmental leaders from around the world to Washington to take part in a "war game," exploring what would happen if such an attack occurred.

The participants included former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, playing the U.S. president; Bernard Kouchner, former president of aid organization Doctors Without Borders, playing the French president; and Swedish Ambassador to the United States Jan Eliasson playing the Swedish prime minister. What follows is how it went.

Authorities will never know definitively, but they think the latest terrorist attack came in the chillingly simple form of one of the thousands of commuters who use New York City's bustling Penn Station.

The terrorist was probably equipped with a canister of smallpox the size of a small fire extinguisher, and infected 25,000 people in very little time. Terrorists with smallpox canisters were likely sent to other crowded hubs around the world, such as Istanbul's Grand Bazaar and Germany's Frankfurt Airport, multiplying the damage.

At first, the officials had no idea how many cases would develop. Soon, news broadcasts from several European countries reported outbreaks. Germany announced the formation of special isolation wards in Frankfurt hospitals.

Smallpox was one of the most-feared diseases in history. In the 20th century alone, it had killed 300 million people. But in the 1970s, it was eradicated. There was no way the new cases could be naturally occurring. Authorities knew it was terrorism immediately.