Ridge Warns of 'Credible' al Qaida Plot

WASHINGTON (AP) - The United States is tightening security in the face of a steady stream of intelligence indicating al-Qaida may seek to mount an attack aimed at disrupting elections, the White House said.

The Department of Homeland Security is addressing the threat and has efforts under way to "ramp up security," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Thursday.

Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said the Bush administration based its decision to bolster security on "credible" reports about al-Qaida's plans, coupled with the pre-election terror attack in Spain earlier this year and recent arrests in England, Jordan and Italy.

"This is sobering information about those who wish to do us harm," Ridge said. "But every day we strengthen the security of our nation."

U.S. officials do not have specific knowledge about where, when or how such an attack would take place, but the CIA, FBI and other agencies "are actively working to gain that knowledge," Ridge said.

Notwithstanding the heightened air of vigilance, the government is not raising its color-coded terror alert status, he said.

Transcript of Tom Ridge Speech

You have heard me and other senior administration officials – the National Security Adviser, Director of the FBI and the Attorney General -- discuss with the American people the increased risk of a terrorist attack this summer. I wanted to take this opportunity to update Americans on both the status of that threat, as well as the efforts of law enforcement and homeland security professionals across the country, under the President’s leadership, to increase security.

Since September 11, 2001, we have had intelligence that al Qa’ida intends to launch more attacks against the homeland. Credible reporting now indicates that al Qa’ida is moving forward with its plans to carry out a large-scale attack in the United States in an effort to disrupt our democratic process. Based on the attack in Madrid and recent interdictions in England, Jordan and Italy, we know that they have the capability to succeed and hold the mistaken belief that their attacks will have an impact on America's resolve. We lack precise knowledge about time, place and method of attack but, along with the CIA, FBI and other agencies, we are actively working to gain that knowledge.

Missing Marine Safe at U.S. Embassy

A missing U.S. Marine who at one point was said to have been captured by Iraqi militants is safe and has met with officials at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, U.S. officials said.

More than two weeks after he was reported missing from his barracks in Iraq, Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun, 24, of West Jordan, Utah, was picked up today with his brothers at an undisclosed location in Lebanon.

Speaking at a news conference in Washington, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Hassoun, who was born in Lebanon, had made contact with the U.S. Embassy in Beirut and arranged a place to meet.

"We went to pick him up and brought him back to the embassy," Boucher told reporters.

Searches Underway on Buses to Hub

Local and federal officials began the first inspections of Boston-bound bus riders' bags in Londonderry, N.H., yesterday, as bus lines face stepped-up security measures to coincide with the Democratic National Convention in Boston.

Londonderry Police Captain Bill Hart said that the use of a bomb-sniffing dog to inspect bags on five Concord Trailways commuter buses had been planned as a general antiterrorism effort this summer, but that the Department of Homeland Security encouraged the policy to be used during convention week, which starts July 26.

The Vermont Transit bus company also plans random baggage inspections from its terminal in White River Junction, Vt., for Boston-bound buses, and officials at Springfield-based Peter Pan bus lines expect to discuss inspections in a meeting with the Transportation Security Administration scheduled for today.

A spokesman for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority said that the T's 375,000 daily bus riders would be subjected to random bag searches in the coming days and that the searches would intensify during convention week. Teams of officers will be stationed at selected bus stops and stations and randomly stop and inspect riders carrying bags, spokesman Joe Pesaturo said.

Until now, the focus has been on T passengers on subway and commuter rail, particularly following federal advisories of a possible terrorist attack on transit systems and the bombing March 11 of commuter trains in Madrid.

A TSA spokesman in Washington said there was "no blanket directive" calling for baggage inspections on private bus lines coming into Boston, but that bus operators and local police were free to include bag searches as part of general security measures.