U.S. authorities warned about the new imminent danger: al-Qaeda, the international terrorist network might launch large-scale terrorist acts on shopping malls in Los Angeles and Chicago over the upcoming Christmas holiday season.
A recently published report says explosions may sound in large shopping malls of Chicago and Los Angeles. The terrorist acts, which terrorists are going to conduct on Christmas Eve, are to undermine the U.S. economy, the report runs. The FBI officials obtained the information about the al-Qaeda plans of a large-scale terrorist acts during the recent two years earlier in September, but the Bureau decided to make it public only now.
The report says that the threat is possible to occur, although the source from which the information was received cannot be trusted absolutely. Nevertheless, official spokespeople for the FBI told reporters that the source proved reliable and trustworthy information in the past.
U.S. special services eventually decided that the Americans should keep their vigilance during Christmas holidays.
Terrorists regularly declare their readiness to conduct terrorist acts in places that enjoy popularity with common people. Shopping malls, subways, for example, are an easy target for terrorists.
The FBI has repeatedly distributed such information before: last year on Christmas and New Year’s Eve and on the threshold of the 9/11 anniversary.
“Out of an abundance of caution, and for any number of other reasons, raw intelligence is regularly shared within the intelligence and law enforcement communities - even when the value of the information is unknown,” FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said, adding that information-sharing has become a crucial component of national security efforts since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Kolko said that al Qaida has repeatedly made clear its intentions to launch more attacks on the U.S. or its interests. “As always, we remind people to remain vigilant and report suspicious activity to authorities,” he said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Thursday downplayed a terrorist threat against shopping malls in Los Angeles during Christmas.