Panel Calls for Creating Counterterrorism Agency

Friday, December 15, 2000; Page A08
By David A. Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer

A federal panel warned yesterday that the United States is vulnerable to terrorists wielding weapons of mass destruction, calling for the creation of a new counterterrorism agency and the loosening of restrictions on CIA agents that prevent them from recruiting confidential informants who have committed human rights abuses.

The panel, chaired by Virginia Gov. James S. Gilmore III, urges President-elect Bush to bolster U.S. preparedness against terrorist threats within one year.

"The United States has no coherent, functional national strategy for combating terrorism," Gilmore said. "The terrorist threat is real, and it is serious."

The panel says responsibility for counterterrorism is too diffuse and needs to be consolidated in one national office. The new agency, with a director appointed by the president, would give Congress a single point of contact on terrorism issues and would focus counterterrorism planning.

However, it would not have operational control over the Justice Department, the FBI, the Department of Defense, the CIA, the National Security Agency and other entities engaged in fighting terrorism.

FBI spokesman Steven Berry said "the FBI has worked with Congress to develop the best organized, equipped and coordinated capability ever. Recent events, as well as recent preventions [of terrorist acts] have demonstrated its effectiveness." The FBI declined further comment.

The release of the report comes as FBI agents and others continue efforts to solve the deadly suicide bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, which killed 17 sailors and injured 39.

In blunt language, the report says the United States has no clear counterterrorism program and argues for the adoption of dozens of changes on the federal, state and local levels.

"We are impelled by the stark realization that a terrorist attack on some level inside our borders is inevitable and the United States must be ready," Gilmore said. "It is truly a 'national' issue that requires synchronization of our efforts."

The report said "human intelligence" must be beefed up by rescinding the portion of 1995 guidelines issued by the CIA that prohibits the "engagement of certain foreign intelligence informants who may have previously been involved in human rights violations." Technology alone, the study said, is not sufficient to keep U.S. officials informed of threats.

"Certain procedures, well-intentioned when implemented, are now hampering the nation's ability to collect the most useful intelligence," the report said.

That recommendation drew sharp criticism yesterday from human rights advocates, who said the CIA must not legitimize torture and other abuses. Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, said rescinding the 1995 guidelines would be "outrageous."

Roth noted that CIA agents, with special approval, remain able to recruit informants who have committed human rights abuses in the past. But he said rolling back the guidelines would be contrary to fundamental U.S. principles.

"When the U.S. government pays someone who is committing torture or executions, it sends the signal that these atrocities are okay so long as you periodically cough up some information," Roth said.

"We should not be trying to protect Americans by embracing people who are severely repressing their own people," Roth added. "The United States has to find ways of collecting information that don't leave us underwriting atrocities."

In calling for the change in CIA policy on informants, Gilmore said his panel was recognizing the need to do everything possible to protect Americans.

While emphasizing the need to protect privacy, the report also calls for other major changes in policies to enhance U.S. counterterrorism efforts. For example, the study says the Justice Department should establish mandatory reporting requirements on the domestic sale and purchase of certain equipment used to make and deliver cyber, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons.

However, some other recent studies, including one by the Washington-based Henry L. Stimson Center, have said the threat of chemical and biological terrorism has been exaggerated.

Still, Gilmore's panel calls for vastly improving the readiness of health and medical organizations at the federal, state and local levels to respond to a terrorist attack.

"The continuing challenge for the United States is first to deter and, failing that, to detect and interdict terrorists before they strike," the report said. "Should an attack occur, local, state and federal authorities must be prepared to respond and mitigate the consequences."

© 2000 The Washington Post Company

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