Ahead of 9/11 anniversary, US issues warning on threat from terrorists

The national terrorism advisory system bulletin said the US faces a “heightened threat environment” from both domestic terrorists “and those inspired or motivated by foreign terrorists and other malign foreign influences”.

The US department of homeland security (DHS) issued a new terrorism threat advisory on Friday ahead of the anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks and amid a resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic.

A man wearing a protective face mask walks by One World Trade Center. (Reuters file photo)

The national terrorism advisory system bulletin said the US faces a “heightened threat environment” from both domestic terrorists “and those inspired or motivated by foreign terrorists and other malign foreign influences”.

It cited increased use of “online forums to influence and spread extremist narratives and promote violent activity”.

The new advisory updated a January alert following the attack on the US Congress by supporters of then-president Donald Trump, when DHS said the country faced “increasingly complex and volatile” threats from anti-government and racially motivated extremists, often stirred up by online influence from abroad.

Meanwhile, a military base in the nation’s capital was locked down for about two hours on Friday, after an armed man ran onto the grounds during a local police investigation of gunshots on the streets surrounding the base.