Jun 17, 2024 - World

U.S. faces "serious threat" of terror attack, expert and former CIA chief warn

Dave Lawler

A man puts flowers on the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan last year during a ceremony on the 21st anniversary of the terrorist attacks. — Hagi Abucar puts flowers on the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan last year during a ceremony on the 21st anniversary of the terrorist attacks. Photo: Yuki Iwamura/AP

Alarmed by repeated warnings from top FBI and military officials, a former acting CIA director and a legendary foreign policy thinker write bluntly in Foreign Affairs: "The United States faces a serious threat of a terrorist attack in the months ahead."

Why it matters: Michael Morell and Graham Allison write that there are striking echoes of the run-up to 9/11 — including warnings about Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda by then-CIA director George Tenet.

Now, similar warnings are popping up from FBI director Chris Wray and Army Gen. Erik Kurilla — the commander of CENTCOM, which includes the Middle East.

Between the lines: Repeated warnings of this sort from national security officials and experts in the two decades since 9/11 have not come to fruition.

Over that time, terrorism has faded as a national fixation.

Go deeper: Read the full Foreign Affairs essay (email required).

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U.S. faces "serious threat" of terror attack, expert and former CIA chief warn

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