Rumsfeld, Mueller Warn of New Attacks

Jan. 31, 2002 -- Leaders of the nation's military and law enforcement forces warned that America will have to remain vigilant for "sleeper" terrorists at home and abroad for a long time, even as reports of a new threat against U.S. nuclear plants surfaced today.

FBI Director Robert Mueller and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld warned the nation in separate addresses today to be on constant alert and that terrorists could be planning attacks much worse than the terror of Sept. 11.

Underscoring the dire warnings, reports surfaced that the government last week warned nuclear power plants of a possible terrorist attack. On Jan. 23, the Nuclear Regulatory commission sent an advisory to operators of all 103 commercial nuclear reactors at 63 sites across the country that terrorists were planning an airplane attack on a power reactor.

The alert, government officials told The Associated Press, stemmed from information an al Qaeda representative gave during questioning. The NRC alert, said "the attack was already planned" and three people "already on the ground" were trying to recruit non-Arabs to take part, a government source told The Associated Press. But the alert stressed the al Qaeda operative's information had not been authenticated or corroborated. Similar reports have arisen in the past that have turned out to be unfounded.

In addition to the nuclear threat reports, CIA Director George Tenet sent a report to Congress saying that officials had found crude diagrams of nuclear weapons in a suspected al Qaeda safe house in Afghanistan. Other evidence uncovered in Afghanistan included diagrams of American nuclear power plants, but, the report said, it is unclear if an attack was planned.

Also, within the past 24 hours, the FBI has issued an advisory to public utilities across the country warning that a computer from an alleged associate of Osama bin Laden contained engineering information.

Al Qaeda Diminished, But Still Deadly

The latest threat reports come on top of news that al Qaeda may have targeted specific landmarks and facilities in the United States. At a press briefing in Washington, D.C., today, Mueller said that the U.S. campaign in Afghanistan had diminished the ability of bin Laden's al Qaeda terrorist organization to launch a major attack, but that documents recovered from Afghanistan suggest the U.S. Capitol, Seattle's Space Needle and a portion of Los Angeles were potential terrorist targets.

Military, CIA and FBI investigators have been studying the documents that sources said were recovered from the home of Osama bin Laden's top military commander, Mohammed Atef, who was killed in the U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan. Atef's home was the site where officials also found videotapes of five "suicide terrorists" now being sought by the U.S. government.

The documents, sources said, referred to Washington, D.C., specifically the U.S. Capitol. Among the items found in Afghanistan were a picture of the Space Needle and a satellite image of a six-block area of what officials say appears to be a portion of Los Angeles, the sources said.

They said the documents were mainly pictures or maps with circled locations. Since the documents did not make any reference to dates, methods of attacks or a specific attack, government sources do not consider the new information a high-level threat.

Still on High Alert

"We're still on a very high state of alert, and we will be for some time," Mueller said.

With the upcoming Super Bowl this weekend and the start of the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City next week, Mueller said agents are closely monitoring potential threats and strengthening security measures.

"We've moved heaven and earth to provide security, whether it be the Super Bowl or the Olympics, and I think we've done a good job in enhancing the security," he said.

Mueller said that intelligence officials know that al Qaeda representatives or operatives who trained in al Qaeda camps who are scattered worldwide and perhaps in the United States. Some of these potential threats have been arrested, deported and are currently under surveillance.

"There are sleepers in some countries capable of carrying out additional attacks," he said. "We're doing everything we can to identify those and to make certain those who have the potential for committing future terrorist acts are addressed."

"Can I say there are none in the United States?" Mueller added. "No, I will not say that. Do I know for sure there are some in the United States? I would say I believe there are, but I cannot say for sure."

A New War, A New Approach

Rumsfeld stressed that the traditional approach to war and security would not work against today's terrorists as he pitched the Bush administration's proposed $48 billion increase in the 2003 defense budget at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. He said the United States needs to change its approach to national security because of a vulnerability to new forms of attacks that was exposed Sept. 11. From attacks on computer systems to biological warfare to missile attacks on U.S. cities, Rumsfeld said the nation cannot rule out any kind of attack.

"Our challenge in this new century is a difficult one — to prepare to defend our nation against the unknown, the uncertain, the unseen and the unexpected," Rumsfeld said. "The challenges of the new century are not nearly as predictable as they were a few months ago. Let there be no doubt that we will likely be surprised again."

Rumsfeld said the military must be radically changed to deal with the new, unconventional challenges. It is already apparent, he said, that America's enemies learned from the Gulf War that there is no point trying to meet the U.S. military head-on, and that future attacks would be unexpected and unconventional.

"Preparing for the future will require us to think differently and develop the kinds of forces and capabilities that can adapt quickly to new challenges and to unexpected circumstances," he said. "An ability to adapt will be critical in a world where surprise and uncertainty are the defining characteristics of our new security environment."

Among the lessons Rumsfeld said had been learned from the Afghan campaign was the need to fight wars using every weapon at the nation's disposal, including economic, diplomatic, financial, law enforcement and intelligence capabilities; the importance of increasing the communication capabilities of troops on the battlefield; and the need to no longer wait for attacks to be carried out, but to take preventive and pre-emptive action.

Sharing Information

Mueller said today that a secure computer network has been set up to allow the U.S. military, the CIA and FBI to share documents found in Afghanistan. Two to 10 FBI agents have been in Kandahar and other places in Afghanistan to help with the interrogations of captured Taliban and al Qaeda forces. Now that some prisoners have been sent to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, where the questioning facilities are better, the agents will not be needed as much in Afghanistan.

The FBI director refused to discuss in detail what agents have learned documents recovered from Afghanistan. He only mentioned that the videos of the five suicide bombers released by the State Department two weeks ago have provided useful information.

However, Mueller said, officials still have not been able to determine when the videos were made. Mueller also added that Saudi Arabia has been helpful in the sharing of various documents and praised Egypt, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan for their efforts in the war on terrorism.

ABCNEWS' Beverley Lumpkin and Pierre Thomas contributed to this report.