UK's Blair to Warn Over Christmas Terror Fear
Sun Nov 10, 8:04 PM ET
story.news.yahoo.com
LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair (news - web sites) will tell Britons on Monday they must be extra vigilant as he warns about a possible terror attack in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
A spokesman for Blair said he would set out the threat from al Qaeda -- blamed for last year's September 11 attacks in the United States -- in an annual speech at the Guildhall in the City of London on Monday.
But he would also caution against handing victory to militants by running scared or bringing the country grinding to a halt.
"Terrorists want to damage countries and economies such as ours -- either through actual attacks or fear of attacks," the spokesman told Reuters.
"They want to paralyze society and we recognize it is our goal to stop them by thwarting attacks through vigilance as a government, businesses and individuals and ensuring normal life continues."
Blair's speech, which will also range over foreign policy, comes days after a government mix-up led to a strong warning of a large-scale terrorism attack being issued -- then withdrawn -- within hours last week.
The incident, coupled with a spate of reports about renewed activity by the al-Qaeda network, has added to Briton's unease as tension mounts over Iraq and newspapers talk up the likelihood of an imminent mass deployment of troops.
Home Secretary David Blunkett said on Sunday that Britain was "in the front line" because of its strong support for U.S. action against al-Qaeda, suspected of carrying out last year's September 11 attacks.
He also warned that no government could provide absolute protection from determined opponents.
"We cannot guarantee that we can protect everyone...all the time," Blunkett told BBC Television.
Blunkett's remarks, and Blair's planned speech, echo warnings from senior U.S. officials about the continuing threat from al Qaeda.
France also moved to warn its citizens on Sunday, saying intelligence reports pointed to France as a favored target of militant Islamic groups that remained active in Europe. |
