Pittsburgh InfraGard Security News

Fears of a potential terror attack are overshadowing festivities to mark the anniversary of German reunification. Security around the Brandenburg Gate is tight with increased police presence. The capital’s interior minister, meanwhile, urged Berliners to be “increasingly vigilant.”

Berlin’s police force is on high alert. Following a series of al-Qaida propaganda videos directly threatening Germany, officials have beefed up security around the festivities to mark German reunification. “Due to the altered security situation there will be significantly more security forces on site on October 3,” Berlin’s Interior Minister Ehrhart Körting told SPIEGEL ONLINE. “Additionally the police will be warned to watch out for suspicious people and vehicles.”

Read More: http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,652915,00.html

By Eric Lipton

WASHINGTON, Jan. 8 — House Democrats intend to fulfill a campaign promise this week by passing broad new antiterrorism legislation, but some Senate Democrats and the Bush administration object to security mandates in the plan, citing concerns about their cost and practicality.

The House measure, the Sept. 11 Commission Bill, is intended to write into law recommendations by the group that investigated the 2001 terror attacks. They include initiatives intended to disrupt global black markets for nuclear weapons technology and to enhance cargo inspection.

“Today marks a giant leap forward toward a safer and more secure America,” said Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi, the new chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, as he unveiled the bill Friday.

Read More:  http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/09/washington/09terror.html