Americans warned on foreign travel

LAST week’s terror attacks in Kenya have highlighted another threat — surface-to-air missiles fired at commercial airplanes — and leaders of the US Senate Intelligence Committee say they anticipate more terrorist action ahead.

"Let's be honest about it: there are thousands of these surface-to-air missiles around the world," said the committee's vice chairman Senator Richard Shelby, R-Ala. "You can buy them, and you can transport them. A lot of them are not as accurate as others. But eventually, that's going to be one of the methods for the

terrorists to hit." n Thursday's attacks in Mombasa, Kenya, attackers launched two shoulder-fired missiles at an Israeli Boeing 757 taking off for Israel with 261 passengers and 10 crew members. Both missed, narrowly.

Transportation Security Administration spokesman Robert Johnson said his agency took up the anti-aircraft problem months ago. "We work very closely with all other agencies at the federal level and below that are

engaged in deterring this new threat," he said.

Mr Johnson said the agency alerted federal security directors at all US airports after hearing of the missile

attack.

Mr Graham and Mr Shelby suggested the Kenya attacks indicate further action against the US, its allies and friends that could be exacerbated by events in the Middle East.

"What we can anticipate is some increase in activity in the next few weeks," Mr Graham said.

"One of the factors affecting that is the election in Israel, where different groups, for different reasons, want to destabilise the situation in Israel. ... And then second, the onset of a war against Iraq will be another spike of terrorist activity," he added.

Mr Graham confirmed reports that US officials think the errant missile attack and the hotel bombing were the work of al-Itihaad al-Islamiya a Somali-Kenyan group with loose affiliations with al-Qaida.

Mr Graham said he expects US or Israeli investigators to solve the crimes, although Kenyan authorities are

working as hard as they can, he said.

"They have several problems," he said. "One, not only is Kenya a target for terrorist action, Kenya has also

become a cell for al-Qaida and other terrorist groups. And second, their capability to do comprehensive

investigation is limited."

Mr Graham predicted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein would unleash terrorist cadres in the United States should he determine his rule is endangered.

"We face, according to the consensus view of our intelligence community, a 75% or better likelihood of terrorist attacks inside the US at the point that Saddam Hussein feels all is lost and he's about to be toppled from power," Mr Graham said.

On Saturday, the State Department told Americans to be wary of travel in East Africa, particularly Djibouti, a former French colony that is host to thousands of American soldiers. Djibouti borders Ethiopia and Somalia, Kenya's northern neighbours.

The department also reissued a travel warning for Yemen, across the Gulf of Aden from Djibouti, where substantial numbers of al-Qaida network supporters are said to be.