FBI Braces for Possibility of July 4 Attacks

WASHINGTON -- Even as authorities played down uncorroborated reports of an Al Qaeda attack on the Southern California coast, the FBI was girding Tuesday for possible attacks on July 4 and canvassing major celebrations around the country for signs of trouble.

The FBI “is assuming a heightened security posture” because of a rash of worrisome intelligence reports indicating that major Independence Day celebrations could be attacked, according to a confidential law enforcement alert reviewed by The Times.

Many of the intelligence reports--which could stem from interrogations of captured Al Qaeda operatives--are considered unsubstantiated or “of unknown validity,” officials said.

Nonetheless, the FBI is requiring each of its 56 field offices around the country to develop plans of operation by Thursday for monitoring all major Independence Day celebrations in their regions and coming up with a response plan if problems develop. FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III is expected to brief President Bush on the July 4 threat in coming days.

In recent weeks, the FBI has looked into, and generally dismissed, intelligence tips about the possibility of attacks on nuclear facilities and subways on or around July 4.

But the alert put out by FBI headquarters on Friday to its field offices goes far beyond previous concerns in urging agents to be alert to possible attacks at all major Independence Day celebrations nationwide.

Of particular concern are those in the vicinity of subways that could be the target of biological or chemical attack, officials said.

The CIA, which has been feuding with the FBI in recent weeks over allegations of missed warning signs before Sept. 11, will also be consulted about all July 4 threats in an effort to have the two agencies share all intelligence information, officials said.

“There’s an awful lot of anxiety about the Fourth of July,” said an FBI agent who asked not to be identified. “There’s not much hard information about when or where, but people are concerned.”

Cheryl Mimura, a spokeswoman for the FBI in Los Angeles, said local agents have already begun contacting organizers of July 4 fireworks and festivals to determine their plans for the holiday.

The Los Angeles office will be reporting to Washington headquarters in coming days with what it has found and its response plan should problems develop. Agents may staff specific events if the need arises, but it has no plans so far to open a special command post at any events, she said.

FBI officials in Los Angeles said they could not discuss any special preparations for July 4.

The Washington alert does not specify what should be considered a major celebration, and with thousands of Independence Day events and fireworks displays planned nationwide for one of the biggest holidays of the year, tracking them could prove an enormous task for the bureau.

But agents are being urged to focus on those high-profile events that are likely to draw particularly large crowds, including political leaders and celebrities, law enforcement sources said.

By opening control files on major events, the FBI--which has been accused of failing to connect pre-Sept. 11 warnings--would be able to look for patterns and match new intelligence information against what is known about July 4 celebrations, sources said.

Authorities “want to know what’s going on around the country,” the agent said. “We want to know where the substantial gatherings and celebrations are so that if something emerges in the next three weeks, [the FBI] can do a better job of connecting the dots.”

Since Sept. 11, the FBI has chased down leads on dozens of potential sites, dates and methods for terrorist attacks. Authorities have pursued leads about everything from explosive-laden scuba divers and attacks on banks and strip malls to Tuesday’s uncorroborated report about a boatload of Al Qaeda operatives heading for Santa Catalina Island.

Many of these leads have been generated by interviews with captured Al Qaeda operatives in Cuba and with senior Osama bin Laden aide Abu Zubeida, who is thought to be in custody in or near Pakistan since his capture in March.

The slew of intelligence tips has stirred fears that Zubeida may be spreading disinformation in order to send U.S. authorities down the wrong path.

But some of the information he has provided appears to have proved credible, as in the apprehension of Jose Padilla, suspected of making plans to detonate a “dirty” bomb.

Authorities say they are trying to track all leads, even at the risk of stirring alarm among the public.

“Unfortunately, this is part of the new reality post-9/11, and it’s something we’re all still growing used to,” a Justice Department official said Tuesday.

Indeed, the reports about a boatload of Al Qaeda operatives headed for Catalina sent ripples of concern throughout Southern California on Tuesday.

But authorities said they believed the threat, first reported in the Washington Times, was baseless.

“I don’t think California is under attack,” said the Justice Department official, who asked not to be identified. “There is no ship; the Coast Guard doesn’t have anything in its sights.”

The tip was generated from unidentified intelligence sources, and agents investigated it to determine its veracity, according to FBI officials in Washington and Los Angeles.

“We did look into it, but at this point, the investigation has not been able to substantiate or otherwise support the information,” said Bill Carter, an FBI spokesman in Washington.

Carter said authorities “continue to receive information from detainees and other sources about possible acts of terrorism. We don’t ignore them, we run them out as much as we can, but in this case the investigation has not substantiated the threat.”

The threat was never considered serious enough to consult with senior officials at the Justice Department or other federal agencies in Washington, officials said.