Officials receive tip on terrorism threat for New York, DC

Story from The Takeaway. Listen to audio for full report.

Last night, as President Obama was giving his jobs speech, federal authorities were confirming reports that there is a specific, credible terrorist threat for the New York City and District of Columbia areas this coming weekend.

Counterterrorism officials are investigating a possible truck bomb, and New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a press conference last night that he would increase security in the city, and that residents should keep their “eyes wide open.”

Matt Chandler, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security, called the threat “specific, credible, but unconfirmed.”

“They’re taking this very seriously,” said Scott Shane, national security reporter for The New York Times. He wrote about the threat in yesterday’s edition.

Officials received a tip that said “a small number of people traveled in the United States, apparently in August with a plot to blow up — what they call a vehicle bomb: a car bomb, a truck bomb — in New York and/or Washington,” according to Shane.

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