Further terrorist attacks in the United States are "a distinct possibility," the head of the FBI said today.
"The threat remains very high," Mr Robert Mueller said at a meeting of the US Conference of Mayors."More attempts and possible attacks are a distinct possibility."
He also addressed a series of bioterrorist attacks that have caused three anthrax deaths in recent weeks. "Clearly we are deeply concerned about the growing wave of anthrax attacks."
Officials have said there was no evidence at this stage to link the anthrax attacks to the September 11th strikes on New York and Washington.
"It is not clear if they are motivated by organized terrorism," Mr Mueller said of the mailings of anthrax-laden letters. "But these attacks were clearly meant to terrorise a country already on the edge," he said.
Mr Mueller said the FBI normally pursues some 250 leads a year on the use of weapons of mass destruction, but in the past three weeks alone, the agency has looked into 3,300 separate reports, 2,500 of which were related to anthrax.
"We are taking each report seriously," he said of the leads on potential use of the deadly bacteria.
At least three people have died after contracting anthrax and at least 10 others have been infected.
AFP