FBI Agents Interview Arab-American Business Leaders : Terrorism: U.S. hopes to head off acts of the type threatened by Hussein.

FBI agents, seeking to “ratchet up” awareness of possible terrorist acts resulting from military action against Iraq, Monday began interviewing more than 100 Arab-American business leaders.

Assistant FBI Director William M. Baker, in confirming the interviews, emphasized that they are voluntary and that those being questioned are not regarded as “targets or suspects in any way.”

Instead, the purpose is to “let the responsible Arab-American community” know of the FBI’s counterterrorism mission and its eagerness for any information they could provide, said Baker, who heads the bureau’s general investigative division. The division includes the counterterrorist unit.

The FBI interview program, which is focusing on the Southern California and Detroit areas because of their sizable Arab-American populations, was cleared with senior staff members of the National Security Council, a government source said.

Those being interviewed “understand American culture and, more importantly, the culture of the Mideast in particular,” Baker added in an interview.

Agents are also advising the businessmen that the FBI will investigate under its civil rights responsibilities any acts against Arab-Americans “should there be an ignorant backlash” resulting from military action against Iraq, Baker said.

Albert Mokhiber, president of the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee, complained that he has been contacted by several Arab-Americans who said they have already been questioned by FBI agents. He said he resents the fact that the FBI didn’t consult his committee in advance, and he is asking FBI Director William S. Sessions for a meeting on the matter.

“A fishing expedition among Arab-Americans sends us back to World War II Japanese-American concentration camps,” Mokhiber said. And he said it will lead to “suspicion of Arab-Americans.”

The FBI’s questioning began in the wake of a statement by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein warning of worldwide action if Iraq is attacked.

“The main weight of the military battle may be Iraq, but the theater of our operations (includes) every struggler and fighter whose hand can reach out to harm . . . aggressors in the whole world,” Hussein told his army commanders Sunday night. The statement was broadcast Monday on Iraqi television.

Baker said that the FBI will be taking other “initiatives” to sharpen U.S. ability to detect and head off any terrorist activity “as we get into this crucial period” nearing the Jan. 15 U.N. deadline for Iraq to pull out of Kuwait. He declined to describe the initiatives.

In a typical interview, Baker said, agents introduce themselves, explain the FBI’s civil rights responsibilities and its mission to act against crimes “committed under the umbrella of terrorism.”

Those interviewed are asked to provide any information they have or obtain in the future that would assist the FBI to protect U.S. people and property, Baker said.

James Zogby, president of the Arab-American Institute in Washington, a policy think tank engaged in political organizing of Arab-Americans, said that there have been no instances of organized Arab-American support for terrorism. The questioning “puts a chill on legitimate political activity that our community is entitled to carry out,” he complained.

Also on Monday, the State Department said that it is “seriously concerned” about the threat of terrorist attacks.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher cited “repeated examples of planning for terrorist activity, including surveillance of potential American targets” since Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait Aug. 2. He declined to elaborate, but other officials said that U.S. diplomats have seen people who are apparently conducting surveillance around U.S. property abroad.

Boucher added that the United States does not have “any specific and credible information that would affect the public on imminent attacks.” He also reiterated President Bush’s warning that the United States will hold Hussein responsible for any terrorist attacks.