Americans warned of terror threat at World Cup
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Fox Sports
Americans traveling to South Africa's World Cup were being warned Friday over the possibility of terrorism during the international soccer tournament.
"Large-scale public events like the World Cup may present a wide range of attractive targets for terrorists," a statement by the U.S. state department said.
"There is a heightened risk that extremist groups will conduct terrorist acts within South Africa in the near future."
It added that the government had no information on any specific threat related to the World Cup, which former President Bill Clinton plans to attend.
Veteran U.S. lawmaker Rep. Kay Granger (R-Tex.) recently warned that players, rather than spectators, were at threat from terrorism during the World Cup.
Soccer teams from the U.S. and Holland faced the biggest risk, he said, after being briefed on security issues at the South Africa games.
Soccer's governing body FIFA said last week that no terror threats against the World Cup were uncovered by any intelligence agency working with it -- this despite al Qaeda saying earlier this year that it hoped "hundreds" of spectators would be killed in an explosion during England's match against the USA in Rustenburg on June 12.
President Barack Obama greeted the U.S. soccer squad at the White House Thursday, as they prepared to travel to the competition.
"Everybody is going to be rooting for you," he told them. "We are incredibly proud of what you've done already."
The team was due to arrive in South Africa on May 31.
<!-- esi: /module/MP2/20027/14726098/198/0/0?categoryId=198--><!--The JSP file for MP2 is not ready yet.-->
Fox Sports
Americans traveling to South Africa's World Cup were being warned Friday over the possibility of terrorism during the international soccer tournament.
"Large-scale public events like the World Cup may present a wide range of attractive targets for terrorists," a statement by the U.S. state department said.
"There is a heightened risk that extremist groups will conduct terrorist acts within South Africa in the near future."
It added that the government had no information on any specific threat related to the World Cup, which former President Bill Clinton plans to attend.
Veteran U.S. lawmaker Rep. Kay Granger (R-Tex.) recently warned that players, rather than spectators, were at threat from terrorism during the World Cup.
Soccer teams from the U.S. and Holland faced the biggest risk, he said, after being briefed on security issues at the South Africa games.
Soccer's governing body FIFA said last week that no terror threats against the World Cup were uncovered by any intelligence agency working with it -- this despite al Qaeda saying earlier this year that it hoped "hundreds" of spectators would be killed in an explosion during England's match against the USA in Rustenburg on June 12.
President Barack Obama greeted the U.S. soccer squad at the White House Thursday, as they prepared to travel to the competition.
"Everybody is going to be rooting for you," he told them. "We are incredibly proud of what you've done already."
The team was due to arrive in South Africa on May 31.
