CIA - al-Qaida terrorists still threaten U.S. targets

WASHINGTON -- The director of the CIA said Wednesday that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist group remains a serious threat, interested in striking "high-profile" American targets including the Olympics that open Friday in Salt Lake City.

George Tenet, facing tough questions about Sept. 11, also acknowledged that the CIA never will be able to foresee all attacks.

"We know they will continue to plan, we know they will hurt us again," Tenet said. "We have to minimize their ability to do so because there is no perfection in this business."

In his first testimony to Congress since the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, the head of America's intelligence service outlined a wide range of threats against the United States and said al-Qaida remains the most immediate.

Its terrorists have considered attacks against high-profile U.S. government or private facilities, famous landmarks and airports, bridges, harbors and dams, Tenet said.

"High-profile events such as the Olympics or last weekend's Super Bowl also fit the terrorists' interests in striking another blow within the United States that would command worldwide media attention," Tenet told the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Security officials at the Olympics have said they are not aware of any specific threat to the games.

"Their modus operandi is to continue to have multiple attack plans in the works simultaneously and to have al-Qaida cells in place to conduct them," Tenet said.

The U.S.-led war on terrorism has brought arrests of nearly 1,000 al-Qaida operatives in more than 60 countries, and ruined the group's ability to train recruits in Afghan camps, he said.

"That said, I must repeat, al-Qaida has not yet been destroyed," Tenet told lawmakers.

He refused to discuss bin Laden's possible whereabouts during the public hearing.

"Why were we utterly unaware of the planning and execution of the Sept. 11 attacks? In other words, what went wrong?" asked Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala.

Tenet, visibly bristling, said the CIA had known "in broad terms" last summer -- and had warned U.S. officials -- that bin Laden might attack targets inside the United States. But the CIA had no specific knowledge predicting the Sept. 11 attacks.

The CIA did thwart attacks on three or four U.S. facilities overseas last summer, Tenet said. It has disrupted "numerous terrorist attacks since Sept. 11, and we will continue to do so."

Americans wonder why, as they sit chatting in cafes, if American Taliban John Walker Lindh could meet bin Laden, the CIA could not get an agent near him, Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., told the CIA director.

Tenet shot back: "You'd better tell everybody at the cafe that it's not true." He would not elaborate.

Beyond al-Qaida, Tenet said, the United States faces threats from nations trying to develop nuclear, biological or chemical weapons that are hostile to America or support terrorism. President Bush cited Iraq, Iran and North Korea in his State of the Union address last week, saying those countries represented an "axis of evil."

Iraq 'charm' offensive

Of Iraq, Tenet said, "We believe Saddam Hussein never abandoned his nuclear weapons program." He said the Iraqi leader has begun "a political and diplomatic charm offensive" to gain support internationally to end U.N. sanctions.

Tenet said the United States continues to closely watch Iraq's support for terrorist groups, but acknowledged that in recent years its ties to al-Qaida have been limited.

"Baghdad has a long history of supporting terrorism, altering its targets to reflect changing priorities and goals," Tenet said. "It has also had contacts with al-Qaida. Their ties may be limited by divergent ideologies, but the two sides mutual antipathy toward the United States and the Saudi royal family suggests that tactical cooperation between them is possible."

Iran remains a serious concern because of its pursuit of nuclear weapons and missiles and strong support for terror groups, he said. U.S. officials are concerned that a reform movement may be losing momentum.

North Korea continues to sell ballistic missiles to nations including Iran, Libya and Syria, Tenet said.