CIA Director George Tenet says Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida terrorist network is still the most immediate and serious threat to the United States.
In his first congressional testimony since September’s terrorist attacks, Mr. Tenet told the Senate Intelligence Committee that the CIA will never be able to foresee all attacks.
In his words, “We know they continue to plan, and we know they will hurt us again.”
Mr. Tenet said attractive terrorist targets include well known U.S. landmarks and the Winter Olympic Games that open Friday in Salt Lake City. He said U.S. and allied interests in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia are also especially vulnerable. Though al-Qaida has not yet been destroyed, Mr. Tenet said some potential attacks have been blocked by the arrest of nearly one thousand of its operatives in more than 60 countries.
Mr. Tenet said the terrorist threat goes beyond al-Qaida, and includes groups such as Islamic Jihad, Hamas, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and Hezbollah.
In his annual threat assessment, the CIA Director said Iran continues to support terrorists and said Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein is still a threat, retaining what Mr. Tenet described as a vise-like grip on power. He said Russia and China remain key suppliers of weapons technology to nations that pose a threat to the United States.
