Terror threat 'greater than ever' (Rumsfeld)

[sabra]

http://headlines.virgin.net/story/OOO/A872931138899125A00

Terror threat 'greater than ever'

The United States has made progress in the war on terror, but the threat may be greater than ever before because the available weapons are far more dangerous, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said.

"The enemy - while weakened and under pressure - is still capable of global reach, and still possesses the determination to kill more Americans - and to do so with the world's most dangerous weapons," Rumsfeld said in remarks prepared for delivery at the National Press Club.

The US strategy, he said, includes doing everything possible to prevent the enemy from gaining weapons of mass destruction, improving homeland defence and intelligence gathering and helping friendly nations become better able to fight the terrorists in their own countries.

"Because they lurk in shadows, without visible armies, and are willing to wait long periods between attacks, there is a tendency to underestimate the threat they pose," said Rumsfeld. He said there are no fewer than 18 organisations, loosely connected with al Qaida, conducting terrorist attacks.