Senator warns of Iraq's weapons, new attacks

WASHINGTON -- The Senate Intelligence Committee's top Republican says he believes Iraq is developing weapons of mass destruction at multiple sites and a pre-emptive strike is warranted to stop Saddam Hussein from doing "irreparable damage" to Americans.

Sen. Richard Shelby also warned in an Associated Press interview Friday that "between now and Sept. 11, I'd be very alert" for new terror attacks by an al-Qaida network desperate for a victory.

"Although they've been dispersed around the world, they're beginning to reassemble in areas," the Alabama senator said. "We have not killed enough of them. We have not captured enough of them."

Shelby, who met Thursday with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld on the Iraqi situation, said a new American strike aimed at taking out Hussein is inevitable.

It would be foolish to wait while the Iraqi leader builds his arsenal of chemical, biological and perhaps even nuclear weapons, he said.

"I believe they are continuing to manufacture weapons of mass destruction at many sites," Shelby said. "A lot of them we don't know about, some of them we are suspicious of. Every month, every week, Saddam Hussein will have more weapons of mass destruction to use against us. Why put it off?"