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CNN Live Event/Special

Look at Man Who Gave U.S. Intelligence Info. About New 9/11 Attacks

Aired September 11, 2002 - 10:44   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's turn to David Ensor, who has more information now.
David, you heard Jeanne just report that she's getting conflicting information from her sources, some say radiation was found, other sources saying the tests are inconclusive. What have you heard?

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: I can't add anything to this report about the ship, but I can tell you about why the -- more about why the nation is on such a high state of alert.

CNN has been told by more than one intelligence source that the key al Qaeda prisoner whose information led to this heightened state of alert, more -- his information more than any others, is Omar al- Faruq who is a Kuwaiti national. He was arrested in Indonesia about two months ago and some weeks ago was turned over to the United States. He's in U.S. custody, but not in the United States, and I am told also not in Guantanamo Bay.

He, in the last few days, has started to talk and give useful information, U.S. officials say, including very specific information about plots to attack various American targets, U.S. facilities in southeast Asia. So more than any other source, it is this Omar al- Faruq who is -- it is information from him that has caused the United States to go on this heightened state of alert. Although officials stress there is also other intelligence suggesting, for example, that there could be suicide attacks against targets in the Middle East and also a general kind of a chatter, Paula, among al Qaeda supporters that they might like to commemorate this day in a more negative way than the United States is doing today.

ZAHN: As you no doubt know, the government is very cautious when it decides to go public with these alerts because they don't want to cause an unnecessary sense of panic or fear in Americans. And yet Americans are in some ways becoming inured to these warnings. What is it the average American is supposed to do today, particularly as we reach this very important one-year marker?

ENSOR: Well, you know the government on the one hand doesn't want to be accused of not having warned people if something does happen and they do have this intelligence which has caused a great deal of concern, certainly in the U.S. intelligence community. On the other hand, as you say, they don't want Americans to panic. There is no sense so far that many have. You heard the attorney general yesterday saying that what's important is that Americans go ahead and commemorate this important day and go about their daily business and continue with life as normal while being on a state of alert in the sense that if they see something suspicious that leads them to think there could be some kind of terrorism plotted, they certainly let the authorities know very quickly -- Paula.

ZAHN: David Ensor, thanks so much.

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