Metra talks to TSA about al-Qaida threats
Newly uncovered documents show al-Qaida planned to derail an American train on the upcoming 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Meanwhile, Metra officials said they have been in contact with the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security regarding those threats.
Details of the plan emerged Thursday after some of the first intelligence was gleaned from the trove of information found in bin Laden's residence when Navy SEALs killed the al-Qaida leader and four of his associates.
They took his body and scooped up computers, DVDs and documents from the compound where U.S. officials think he had been living for as long as six years.
The confiscated materials reveal the rail attack planning as of February 2010. One idea outlined in handwritten notes was to tamper with an unspecified U.S. rail track so that a train would fall off the track at a valley or a bridge.
Counterterrorism officials said they believe the plot was only in the initial planning stages, and there is no recent intelligence about any active plan for such an attack.
The FBI and Homeland Security issued an intelligence bulletin with details of the plan to law enforcement around the country. The bulletin, marked “for official use only,” was obtained Associated Press.
Tom Miller, a spokesman for Metra, said they are aware of the threat, adding Metra will take additional measures to ensure commuters are safe.
“We have been on heightened security since 9-11, but we'll take additional measures both behind the scenes and publicly,” he said.
Miller said additional officers will be stationed at train stations and on trains to protect commuters. They have also urged passengers to tell crew members if they see anything out of the ordinary.
“Our security teams will also remain in contact with TSA and Homeland Security for information as its released,” he said.
Intelligence analysts have been reviewing and translating the material seized from the compound, looking for information about pending plots and other terror connections. In light of the intelligence indicating al-Qaida was considering an attack on a U.S. railway, the FBI and Homeland Security told local officials to be on the lookout for clips or spikes missing from train tracks, packages left on or near the tracks and other indications that a train could be vulnerable.
“While it is clear that there was some level of planning for this type of operation in February 2010, we have no recent information to indicate an active ongoing plot to target transportation and no information on possible locations or specific targets,” Thursday's warning to law enforcement said.
Homeland Security spokesman Matt Chandler said, “This alleged al-Qaida plotting is based on initial reporting, which is often misleading or inaccurate and subject to change.” He said the government has no plans to issue an official terror alert because of it.
The transportation sector — including U.S. railways — continue to be attractive targets for terrorists. In the past few years, U.S. officials have disrupted other terror plots that targeted rails, including a 2009 plan to bomb the New York City subway system.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said she's urged the homeland security secretary to increase the country's threat level while the material seized from bin Laden's compound is reviewed.
“I continue to question the secretary's decision not to increase the threat level,” said Collins, the top Republican on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Counterterrorism officials have been meeting regularly since bin Laden was killed to evaluate the threat to the U.S.
• The Associated Press contributed to this report.