US officials warn of rising threat from homegrown militants - Yahoo! News
WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States faces a "spike" in the threat from homegrown extremists who are inspired by Al-Qaeda and are increasingly difficult to detect, top US officials said Wednesday.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano also said that terror groups posed a heightened danger to the West, including European countries, citing stepped up "activity."
Napolitano warned senators that "a new and changing facet of the terrorist threat comes from homegrown terrorists, by which I mean US persons who are radicalized here and receive terrorist training either here or elsewhere."
She said that the threat "is evolving in several ways that make it more difficult for law enforcement or the intelligence community to detect and disrupt plots."
At the same Senate hearing, Michael Leiter, head of the National Counterterrorism Center, described a "spike in homegrown violent extremist activity" that was enabled by extremist groups abroad using the Internet.
Asked about warnings in European capitals of a growing danger, Napolitano said: "Suffice it to say, we are all seeing increased activity by a more diverse set of groups and a more diverse set of threats."
The threat, which came mostly from Islamist networks, was "directed at the West generally," she said, adding that she would be discussing the issue with her European counterparts at a meeting next week.
Leiter said European authorities had disrupted five Al-Qaeda plots in the past four years.
"Europe is a primary focus of Al-Qaeda plotting," he said.
The comments came after French and British officials warned of a rising danger from Islamists, with the head of France's DCRI domestic intelligence agency, Bernard Squarcini, saying this month his country had never faced a greater "terrorist threat."
Despite elaborate efforts, US officials said that there was no guarantee that an attack could be prevented.
"We want to detect. We want to prevent. But we cannot guarantee that something will not occur," Napolitano told MSNBC television.
"And when it does, we need to be ready to respond, to respond effectively, efficiently, and get back to the work of the country."
Her comments echoed remarks by President Barack Obama, who is quoted as saying in a new book by Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward, that the country could "absorb" another terror attack though he would do everything to prevent it.
Highlighting a surge in attempted attacks or plots by US nationals, officials cited the November shooting rampage last year at Fort Hood in Texas -- blamed on a Muslim army officer -- and the attempted bombing in May of New York's Time Square.
Since 2009, at least 63 US citizens have been charged or convicted on terrorism or related charges, said Joe Leiberman, chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
He said "that's an astoundingly high number of American citizens who have attacked or plan to attack their own country, our country."
Lawmakers questioned if the US government had a clear strategy to counter the homegrown threat, saying no agency was in charge of the effort.
"We must redouble our efforts to better anticipate, analyze and prepare. We must address what is quickly becoming a daunting and highly challenging crisis," Republican Senator Susan Collins said.
FBI director Robert Mueller described a shift in Al-Qaeda's recruitment strategy, with the network since 2006 focusing on US citizens or residents instead of volunteers from the Middle East or South Asia.
He said US authorities were concerned about radicalized Americans travelling abroad to link up with extremist groups or gain experience in war zones, particularly Somalia.
Trying to explain why the homegrown threat was expanding, he said "it is possible more American extremists are feeling increasingly disenchanted with living in the United States or angry about US and Western foreign policy, making their decision to leave for extremist opportunities abroad all the more appealing."
Comments
Post a Comment