Army Analysis Cautioned Troops And Their Families To “Be Vigilant” In Light Of Terrorist Threats

A U.S. Army analysis cautioned troops and their families to “be vigilant” in light of threats of terrorist attacks against American bases and facilities at home and abroad.

“Given the continued rhetoric” from Islamic State’s “media services and supporters through various social media platforms,” the Army’s Threat Integration Center said it was “concerned of the possibility of an attack.”

Intelligence officials say that such threats posted on social media are less worrisome than those that are encrypted or hidden layers deep on jihadist websites, and may be efforts at deception or merely bragging. Army spokesman Matthew Bourke said in an e-mail that the Army is “not adjusting force protection levels” in the U.S. or overseas.

The four-page “special assessment” dated Sept. 23 emphasized that it wasn’t a “finished intelligence product” and hadn’t identified “any corroborative or definitive extremist plots focused on the U.S. Army, its soldiers, government civilians and family members.”

The document, labeled “Unclassified/For Official Use Only,” said that as many as 300 Americans are fighting alongside Islamic State extremists in Syria and Iraq, an increase over initial “low confidence” estimates of 100.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-02/army-says-troops-should-be-aware-of-islamic-state-threats.html