US National Counterterrorism Center warns of threat from al Qaeda

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By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. National Counterterrorism Center said on Friday that recent calls by al Qaeda for attacks against the United States showed the group’s enduring threat to the country.

Al Qaeda and its Yemen-based affiliate, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) “are likely seeking to leverage their media publications and global conflicts, particularly where there is U.S. support or military involvement, to inspire potential attackers,” it said in a memo to law enforcement.

The memo urged government officials to avoid surveillance, to not post or publicly share details about travel plans, schedules and locations, and to remove badges and other forms of identification outside of work.

It also warned of potential threats to targets that draw large crowds including sport and music events and urged law enforcement presence at those events along with organizing pre-event briefings on security measures.

The United States designates al Qaeda as a “foreign terrorist organization.” The September 11, 2001, attacks in New York and Washington by al Qaeda killed nearly 3,000 people.

A report by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued late last year that evaluated different types of threats to the United States, said al Qaeda was committed to striking the U.S. and had “reinvigorated its outreach” to Western audiences.

The NCTC, under the control of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, was created in 2004. It said information it was sharing with law enforcement will give them tools to combat targeting attempts by al Qaeda.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)