Al Qaeda Poses New Threat

Feb. 6 -- Al Qaeda may be gearing up again, according to U.S. law enforcement officials in the United States and overseas.

The U.S. State Department issued what it calls a "Worldwide Caution" advisory today, telling Americans there is a heightened risk of a terrorist attack. This caution, which supersedes one issued in November last year, is particularly significant because, for the first time, it mentions what it calls the "growing threat" that terrorists may use "non-conventional weapons, including chemical or biological agents."

In addition, FBI officials briefed Congress today on its latest national threat assessment, which officially comes out next week and is based on an analysis of which groups the FBI feels may have a presence in the United States, what their activities are, which are likely to take terrorist action and their capabilities.

The FBI concluded that al Qaeda remains the No. 1 threat to the United States, as it is believed to have the capability to carry out attacks domestically and abroad.

The FBI believes that mid-level managers of al Qaeda are able to execute major strikes, despite the hundreds of arrests that have been made, and that al Qaeda's leadership is on the run.

Sources said the convergence of three factors is causing particular concern for officials: the increased "chatter" among the terror networks, the possible coming conflict with Iraq, and the hajj — the annual pilgrimage to Mecca that entered its most important phase today.

Their fears are echoed by other nations' leaders as well.

"We see the al Qaeda network as restructuring," German Interior Minister Otto Schily told ABCNEWS, fresh from meetings Tuesday with Attorney General John Ashcroft and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.

Schily, Germany's top law enforcement officer, is in the midst of the most exhaustive investigation in his country's history.

German and other intelligence sources say there is mounting evidence that al Qaeda is moving millions of dollars in cash around the world.