The federal government has known for several years that illegal aliens smuggling drugs have stowed away on Algerian-flagged liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers entering Boston Harbor, and had “some suspicion of possible associations” between the stowaways arriving in Boston and the terrorists indicted for their role in the so-called “Millennium Plot” to blow up Los Angeles International Airport and other U.S. sites, an official with the Department of Homeland Security said.

However, the U.S. Coast Guard “has never possessed credible information indicating either a threat to attack an LNG tanker in Boston Harbor, or to use an LNG tanker to conduct an attack on the city of Boston,” said Pamela J. Turner, Homeland Security’s assistant secretary for legislative affairs, in an April 15 letter to Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-MA), which was released last week. Distrigas of Massachusetts in Everett, MA, operates the only LNG terminal in the Boston Harbor area.

Markey in late March had asked the department to respond to allegations by Richard Clarke, former anti-terrorism czar for the Bush administration, that “al Qaeda operatives had been infiltrating Boston by coming in on LNG tankers from Algeria” prior to the terrorist attacks in the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001 (see NGI, March 29). Clarke made these charges in his new book, Against All Enemies. Markey last week called Homeland Security’s response a “chilling official confirmation” of Clarke’s allegations.

In May 2001, the Coast Guard, U.S. Customs Service, Immigration and Naturalization Service, FBI and state and local authorities boarded an Algerian LNG carrier and found “substantial amounts of U.S. currency and illegal drugs,” Turner wrote, adding that one Algerian crew member was arrested in connection with the drug seizure. She noted the Coast Guard became aware of alleged criminal activity associated with LNG tankers entering the Boston area “about 10 years ago.” Since May 2001, no Algerian LNG tankers have entered the Port of Boston, she said.

Based on reports in 2000 and 2001 of possible links between tanker stowaways and the terrorists indicted in connection with the “Millennium Plot,” Turner said the “Coast Guard intensified its scrutiny of LNG vessels by working with LNG terminal operators and state and local officials to enhance security measures.”

In fact in October of last year, “the Coast Guard created a joint task force…to determine whether there is information indicating that Algerian nationals have been using maritime transport to illegally enter the U.S. and whether these individuals have links to Islamic extremists. The research is ongoing,” she told Markey.

“Preliminary analysis shows a handful of illegal migrants may have had indirect associations with those indicted for the Millennium Bombing Plot…The department has not been able to verify what the associations, intentions, or operational activities of these individuals were when they entered the United States.”

In the meantime, the Coast Guard and the Distrigas LNG terminal have put in place tight security precautions, Turner said. The Maritime Transportation Security Act “will soon require improved security for all vessels and facilities; however, LNG vessels and the facility in Boston [Distrigas] have been operating and will continue to operate at a level of security well above that envisioned by the Act,” she noted.

On the issue of safety, Homeland Security gave LNG tankers entering Boston Harbor and elsewhere around the nation a passing grade. “Risks associated with transportation of any hazardous cargo can never be entirely eliminated, but they can be managed. Based on the various studies conducted to date, the historic safety record of LNG vessels in international service, and the numerous safety and security measures in effect for LNG vessels calling at U.S. ports…the department believes LNG tanker operations can continue to be safely conducted in U.S. ports.”

In response to the letter, Markey said the department “has provided a chilling confirmation that individuals with possible terrorist connections may have entered the U.S. onboard LNG tankers” that docked at the Distrigas terminal in Everett. “This underscores the need for the federal government, as well as state and local governments, to maintain the strongest possible security precautions for all LNG shipments entering the Port of Boston.”

While acknowledging that Distrigas is a key supplier of natural gas to the Northeast, Markey told reporters last week that “we need to review all of the current security measures for LNG shipments into Boston once again to determine whether they are adequate, whether there is anything more that should be done, and if so, develop a plan to implement any new measures as soon as possible.”

He also questioned whether existing Department of Transportation regulations were satisfying a legislative directive for LNG terminals to be sited near urban or residential areas. “Now that we are facing the prospect of up to 40 new LNG terminals being constructed around the county…we need to ensure that the siting of any new LNG terminal takes into account the potential for terrorist attacks,” Markey said.

He noted that he has asked Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to provide more “detailed” information about what specifically happened at the Distrigas LNG terminal, and what the department is doing to “address any potential threats to this facility.” In addition, he said he expects to receive a “detailed…briefing” from the Coast Guard on the Everett facility.

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