Attorney General John Ashcroft and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge officially lowered the threat level of a possible terrorist attack to "Elevated" (yellow) from "High" (orange). President Bush and his administration got the call today and it was agreed that the threat to the nation's homeland has been lessened.
The reduced level was due, in part, to looking at current intelligence reports that indicate a reduced level of what officials call "chatter" among terrorist communications. The other reason cited was the amount of time that has passed since the Muslim religious holiday, Hajj. It was originally thought that terrorist cells might attack once the Hajj period was over. It has been a couple of weeks now since that period and no attacks have occurred.
Ashcroft and Ridge warned, however, that the nation is still under a threat of terror and that we should remain diligent in our security measures.
Sources: WhiteHouse.gov, ABCNEWS.com, Fox News Channel |
