Ruddock sweats on terror risk 12-09-2005 From: AAP
Adam Gadahn, seen in pictures from the FBI, issued the threat.
FEDERAL Attorney-General Philip Ruddock today said he was taking the threat of a terror attack in Melbourne seriously and agonising over the Government's response.
Mr Ruddock said although Australian interests and embassies had been targeted by terrorists in the past, this was the first time an Australian city had been named in a an apparent al-Qaeda warning. "I take every act of this sort seriously. It could be a hoax or it could be very serious," he said.
"I agonise about whether or not we have taken sufficient steps to deal with what I know is a real threat in broad terms."
Australian authorities are examining a videotape purportedly from an al-Qaeda operative that warned Melbourne would be the target of a terrorist attack.
First aired by ABC News in the United States, the tape was obtained in Pakistan by the media organisation and also warns of a strike on Los Angeles.
The footage shows a masked US-born member of al-Qaeda - believed to be Californian man Adam Gadahn - threatening attacks on the two cities, "Allah willing".
"Yesterday, London and Madrid. Tomorrow, Los Angeles and Melbourne," the speaker says, warning that attackers will show no compassion.
Mr Ruddock said he was told of the tape yesterday and officials from various agencies met to discuss it last night.
"The outcome is that at the moment we're not able to speculate about its contents and what it means, but security agencies are working closely with their overseas counterparts to try to find further information about it," he said.
Speaking on Southern Cross Radio, Mr Ruddock said Australia's terrorist alert would remain at medium.
"The threat is a generalised threat ... it's a generalised threat to Melbourne. We have no specific information that would cause us to change the alert at this time."
Mr Ruddock said new anti-terrorism laws announced last week would not be relevant to the videotape.
"They wouldn't be relevant to what's on the video unless we could link it to specific acts which people might be planning or engaged in preparing," he said.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd said the video was proof of the problems with winning the war on terrorism.
"Our approach to terrorist threats to Australia remains zero tolerance and maximum vigilance," he said.
"Threats of this nature ... reminds us that Osama bin Laden, the Taliban and al-Qaeda are still alive, four years after the war on terror effectively started.
"It's regrettable that Australia cut and run from Afghanistan before the job there was completed. Two-and-a-half years later we are having to send Australian troops back."
Earlier today, Premier Steve Bracks and Prime Minister John Howard urged Victorians to respond to the threat against Melbourne by living life as normal.
Mr Bracks said adequate security arrangements were in place for a series of coming events including the AFL Grand Final, the Melbourne Cup and the Commonwealth Games.
"This video is designed to instil fear. That's what it's designed to do," he said.
"Now, of course we would be playing into the hands of the people who perpetrated this media exercise in producing a video, we would be playing into their hands if all of a sudden we said, 'Oh yes, we're fearful'.
"The reality is that we have very sound, secure security arrangements in place. Of course, there will be proper analysis of this tape and of course we will be making sure that all attempts are made to ensure that we're more secure in the future."
Prime Minister John Howard responded to the new threat as he arived in New York.
"It could well be authentic," he said.
"But it could also be the case that the person who has made these comments in the past has not, how shall I put it, demonstrated to have had the capacity to deliver through on those statements.
"Clearly our country has been a terrorist target long before the 11th of September, 2001. Events such as this, whether the tape turns out to be genuine or not, only serves to remind us of the changed world in which we now live as a result of terrorist attacks."
Mr Howard said the videotape underlined emphatically the need for the stronger counter-terrorism regime he outlined last week.
"No government can credibly guarantee there will be no terrorist attack in his or her country but we can commit ourselves as we have done to do everything we can to strengthen our domestic capacity to stop terrorist attacks occurring in the first place," he said.
Mr Howard urged Melburnians to support next year's Commonwealth Games despite the sporting event possibly being a terrorist target.
"The best response to things like this is to redouble our protective efforts, which we are doing, but also to get on with life, which we are also doing," he said.
"The Commonwealth Games will be a great event for Melbourne and I know the people of Melbourne will support the Commonwealth Games with the enthusiasm that they normally do for any major sporting event.
"There is no more dedicated, loyal sporting crowd in the world than the people of Melbourne and I have no doubt that they will display that typical commitment to sport, especially when Australia is participating."
The threat came as it was revealed Australia's anti-terrorist air marshal program would be boosted with more recruits and new international routes.
Up to 40 more air marshals will be trained early next year, bringing the total in Australia to about 170.
And the Federal Government is negotiating to extend the air security program to more South-East Asian destinations.
A Herald Sun investigation into the crack aviation squad has revealed:
UP to 10 armed air marshals at a time have flown together on flights.
Marshals have been involved in one incident.
The chance of being on a flight with marshals is up to 18 per cent and could rise to 23 per cent when the program is expanded.
Marshals earn about $75,000 a year, with the program costing $26 million last year.
Canada wants to put its air marshals on flights to and from Australia.
About 130 armed marshals - officially called air security officers - patrol domestic flights and Qantas services between Australia and the US and Singapore.
The ASO program, introduced in response to the September 11 attacks is run by the Australian Federal Police and is based on US and Israeli operations.
Based on interviews with sources close to the program, the Herald Sun is able to divulge some details of how the anti-terrorist officers operate.
A minimum of two air marshals fly together, with flights chosen randomly or on the basis of intelligence reports.
But up to 10 officers have been assigned to international flights in response to suspicions about certain passengers.
"It takes it away from being a normal mission to being an operation," a source said.
Australian air marshals have been involved in only one security incident, when a 68-year-old man produced a Stanley knife aboard a Virgin Blue flight between Sydney and Cairns on June 10, 2003.
The officers helped the crew subdue the man without revealing their security role to passengers.
"Fingers crossed, if someone does try to hijack an aircraft and we're on it and we stop them, that's going to send a massive message to terrorists," a source said.
Another source said the program initially suffered many resignations, with up to 20 officers going to Iraq for highly lucrative security work.
