Terror Threat Raised to 'Orange'

Sept. 10, 2002 -- The Bush administration today elevated the color-coded terrorist threat level from yellow to orange — the next-to-highest alert level — and warned of a high risk of terrorist attacks in the coming days.

"We are now at high risk of a terrorist attack," said Director of Homeland Security Tom Ridge at an afternoon news conference with Attorney General John Ashcroft. "We are now at level orange."

Ashcroft said "specific intelligence on specific attacks on U.S. interests overseas" prompted the elevated warning. "We believe this to be credible information and the analysis that has been taken by intelligence agencies leads us to believe this is an appropriate step," he said.

Intelligence sources told ABCNEWS some information about a possible attack in Asia came during the last 24 hours from a "second-level" al Qaeda operative in U.S. custody, who only recently began cooperating with American officials.

His information was considered credible because some of his other claims had been independently verified.

The al Qaeda operative told officials the terror group was planning an attack on U.S. targets around Sept. 11 this year, officials said. The operative was not Abu Zubaydah, a top al Qaeda leader captured in March, who has been the source of previous warnings about potential attacks.

U.S. officials also had indications that terrorists in the Middle East were preparing for a suicide attack on U.S. targets at unknown locations.

The recommendation for the move to a new level was made by various federal law enforcement and security agencies, and approved by President Bush.

"The threats that we have heard recently remind us of the pattern of threats we heard prior to Sept. 11," the president said later, speaking at the Afghan Embassy in Washington. "We have no specific threat to America, but we are taking everything seriously, obviously."

Evidence suggested that terrorists had been planning car-bomb or other attacks on U.S. facilities in Southeast Asia, and had been accumulating explosives since January of this year, officials said.

Law enforcement sources told ABCNEWS that officials' greatest concern was the possibility that al Qaeda sympathizers and sleeper cells would attack on their own, without direction from senior al Qaeda leadership.

Symbols of U.S. Power Called Likely Targets

Ashcroft said there was also evidence that terrorists could be plotting attacks inside the United States, but said there was "no evidence of an imminent attack at home."

He said that the most likely targets were the transportation and energy sectors, and symbols of American power, such as military facilities, embassies and national monuments.

"Lower-level al Qaeda operations may view the Sept. 11 anniversary as a suitable time to lash out" in small, less sophisticated attacks against U.S. targets, he said.

The information behind the heightened alert was corroborated by multiple intelligence sources, Ashcroft said. Officials detected an apparent increase in "chatter" by terrorist operatives, similar to that before the attacks of Sept. 11 last year.

Ridge recommended Americans take "common-sense precautions" over the coming days, but urged them not to cancel travel plans or avoid remembrance ceremonies marking the anniversary of last year's attacks.

"Be alert but defiant in the face of this new threat," he said.

Orange Alert Means Tighter Security

The previous Homeland Security Color Advisory Code of yellow indicated that federal authorities believed there was a serious, increased and predictable threat of terrorist activity.

The fifth and final level, red, indicates "the highest or most severe risk of attack," and would prompt measures similar to those on Sept. 11 last year.

Under orange, armed forces and law enforcement agencies coordinate various security measures as extra precautions are taken at public events. Law enforcement officials prepare to work at alternate sites or with forces that are dispersed in various locations. Certain areas are restricted to essential personnel only.

Armed Air Defense Around the Capital

The heightened alert marks the first raise since the system was implemented in March. The move comes amid a flurry of increased security measures in the United States and abroad in the days leading up to the anniversary of last year's terror attacks. These include:

The White House decided to put live anti-aircraft missiles with the air defense units in and around the Washington, D.C., area. The Army "Avenger" missile batteries were unarmed earlier today as they were initially part of a four-day scheduled defense exercise. One defense official said the decision to arm the units was not a response to a specific threat but a precaution to improve radar and air defense around the region.

Vice President Dick Cheney canceled a scheduled live speech in Washington this evening, choosing to make his address via videotape, and was moved to a secure, undisclosed location.

All air marshals — believed to number between 2,000 and 6,000 — will be on duty over the next few days, transportation officials told ABCNEWS. The Coast Guard is also increasing patrols over the next few days.

Ridge called state and local officials to explain the new threat, and advise increased visibility of law enforcement at Sept. 11 events.

Warnings From State Department, Navy

U.S. military forces in Bahrain were put on the highest alert, and the State Department issued a worldwide caution urging Americans to remain especially vigilant, saying there was a "continuing threat of terrorist actions, which may target civilians and include suicide operations."

Approximately 15 embassies or diplomatic posts were expected to be closed today or Wednesday due to security concerns, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said, noting that the list was still changing as new information was evaluated.

The U.S. embassies in Malaysia and Indonesia closed indefinitely today until further notice because of a "credible and specific" terrorist threat. The U.S. diplomatic mission in Cambodia will also shut for at least three days, officials there told The Associated Press, saying the move was a security precaution.

Thailand's prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, said he would increase security at U.S. diplomatic offices there, also as a precaution.

Boucher said the various closures reflected both specific and general information about potential threats, some relating to Mideast tensions and some to the Sept. 11 anniversary.

The armed forces were also taking precaution. The U.S. Central Command, based in Tampa, Fla., was placed on Force Protection Condition Charlie, the second-highest level. U.S. military forces in some countries were already on Force Protection Condition Charlie, but now all have been bumped up to at least this level.

U.S. forces in Bahrain were placed on Condition Delta, the highest level, based on "credible" but not specific threats there.

All U.S. military facilities under the European Command were placed on Condition Bravo, and forces under the Pacific command were placed on "Bravo Plus."

Military facility security ranges from normal to Alpha, then Beta, Charlie, and finally Delta, the highest condition.

The U.S. Navy also issued a warning today, telling shipping companies in the Middle East of possible al Qaeda attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, also known as the Arabian Gulf.

"According to unconfirmed reports circulating within the regional shipping community, the al Qaeda terrorist group has planned attacks against oil tankers transiting the Arabian Gulf and Horn of Africa areas," the Navy said in a statement.

ABCNEWS' Jackie Judd, Pierre Thomas, Lisa Stark, John McWethy, and Terry Moran contributed to this report.