WMD panel says major terrorist attack likely by 2013

Former Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.) said Tuesday that a massive terrorist
attack will likely occur by 2013 unless the world community acts quickly and
decisively.

Graham is the chairman of the congressionally appointed Commission on
the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism,
which is releasing a report on the steps that must be taken to prevent
terrorists from getting access to such weapons.

{mosads}“Ours remains a world at risk and our margin of safety is shrinking,
not growing,” Graham said. “The commission believes that unless the world
community acts decisively and with great urgency, it is likely that a weapon of
mass destruction will be used in a terrorist attack somewhere in the world by
the end of 2013.”

The panel is briefing President Bush, Vice President-elect Biden and
congressional leaders on its findings.

The panel wants President-elect Obama and the new Congress to take
“immediate” steps, both unilaterally and in concert with the international
community, to keep nuclear and biological weapons out of the hands of
terrorists.

“The report covers a lot of important ground, but probably the most
important is its assessment: The risk is growing, not because we’re making no
progress but because the enemy is adapting and we must constantly anticipate
and adapt as well across a broad front,” said former Sen. Jim Talent (R-Mo.),
the panel’s vice chairman.

Among the commission’s recommendations are for the U.S. to “radically
revamp” its Pakistan policy to work toward eliminating the safe haven that
terrorists currently have in parts of that country.

The panel also stated that it is more likely that terrorists would use
a biological weapon of mass destruction than a nuclear weapon and that the
country has to be ready for such an attack.