Israeli and American security officials in the U.S. are reportedly on high alert in the wake of an explosion near the Israeli embassy in New Delhi that wounded an Israeli diplomat's wife and three others. Israel has blamed Iran for the blast, which occurred weeks after an Iranian nuclear scientist was killed in Tehran in a similar manner: with a magnetic explosive device tossed from a passing vehicle. Iran blames Israel for that murder, and analysts say the two nations are locked into an intensifying "yet publicly deniable campaign of violence." more ›

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is visiting New York today to reveal the new national terror alert system the country will adopt now that the old, kinda useless color-coded system is on the way out. Behold the National Terrorism Advisory System, which will "include information specific to the particular credible threat, and will not use a color-coded scale." And, yes, you can like it on Facebook and follow it on Twitter. more ›

With Britain at its top terror alert level after a flaming SUV crashed into Scotland's Glasgow Airport yesterday, New York City has stepped up security at area airports. Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman (the PA oversees JFK, LaGuardia and Newark airpots) said, there were "increased security measures" in place. more ›

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Police captain Eric Adams, who had been reprimanded by the police department for speaking out against last fall's terror alert and implying that Mayor Bloomberg used the alert to draw attention from a mayoral debate he was not participating in, was found not guilty of two charges the NYPD brought against him in a trial. Adams, who is retiring to enter politics, had said the NYPD waited three days before telling the public about a terror threat; he would have been stripped of his pension otherwise. However, he was found guilty of appearing on TV, representing the NYPD without permission. Overall, Adams will be able to retire with his full pension, giving up 15 vacation days for speaking without permission. But his lawyer, Norman Siegel, says Adams will appeal the decision, saying, "If government employees - including police officers - are afraid to speak out and they don't speak out, then we, the citizens, we, the public, lose in the long run. Because the government employees know better than anyone else what's actually happening inside their government agencies." more ›

Gothamist is following the trial of Police Captain Eric Adams. The NYPD claims that Adams gave false information to the public during an appearance on CBS 2 about the subway terror alert last fall, while Adams' lawyer, Norman Siegel (of the ACLU), says that Adams' remarks fall under free speech. Adams had implied that the terror alert was used to overshadow the fact that Mayor Bloomberg wasn't attending a mayoral debate in Harlem (basically that the city waited three days to announce the news and deploy extra police officers), which could possibly be a cause for NYPD retaliation. But the NYPD is saying that Adams' statements during the broadcast were factually incorrect, and the mix of details from other commanders in the Manhattan South precinct is fascinating for the kind of staffing moves the NYPD makes during a terror alert. Adams is also the head of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, and his lawyers also seem to be saying that his role as the head of that organization gives him an opportunity to speak for 100 BLEWC, not necessarily being a "representative of the police department." more ›

Many people think the tape was a way to show people he was still alive after bombings in Pakistan. He has released 35 tapes, and only one seems to have preceded an incident outside of the Middle Eat (a truce with European countries expired and seemed to lead to the London subway bombings). more ›

There's nothing like losing an election by 20 points to a billionaire incumbent mayor who outrageously overspent you to make you upset. Fernando Ferrer complained in El Diario that the news media and polling organizations helped bury him, making some people wonder if he's got a bad case of the sour grapes. Ferrer claims that reporters didn't take notes during his press conferences and polls were too concerned with huge margin Bloomberg had on him. Plus, the October 6 subway terror alert took attention away from the debate that Bloomberg never attended. The NY Times points out that Ferrer did "not place blame on himself at any point in the El Diario interview," but of course the Times would do that - the Times endorsed Bloomberg! We can't blame Ferrer for being incredibly bitter, but blaming the Post for running a pre-election cover that implied it was over for him is way too easy. Democratic strategist Joseph "Geraldine Who?" Mercurio thinks Ferrer should blame his own team, for not having a strong enough "anti-Bloomberg message." more ›

As the feds close in on the people who leaked the maybe, maybe not terror alert, Gothamist would like to take a moment to look at the MTA's evacuation plans for subway riders. If you go to their Evacuation procedure subpage, and you'll find links to videos and, better yet, some animated diagrams of what you should do in case of an emergency. Now, we want to know how many evacuation trains there are to pick people up. Clearly, it's time to go through NYC Subway. more ›

Not only to the rich get tax breaks, they get advanced warning on subway threats that turn out to be kind of unfounded! The Daily News delves into the emails floating around in rarefied circles, where people with Department of Homeland Security connections frantically emailed friends and family, telling them not to take the subway. Let's break down the "rich and well-connected were tipped off" facet: Given that WNBC had information about the terror alert but held the information at the request of the NYPD, Gothamist can only imagine that anyone who works in the WNBC news department and their social circles knew about the terror threat. And somehow, all these people forgot to email the bloggers, probably realizing that we should be left to wither. However, Gothamist will be looking for a sugar daddy or mommy to get us on the list. more ›

Subway riders get to fix their underground paranoias back onto smelly train cars, whether or not the F train will actually arrive, and sudden train re-routings as the heightened subway security has been lowered (heightening + lowering = back to normal, which is elevated) for New York City. It's unclear whether or not there was ever a threat: Some federal officials say there wasn't, some say the alleged conspirators confessed to making it up, some suspect the terror alert was a political move, versus a public safety one. Well, at least now the NYCLU lawsuit is back on, most likely. What's interesting is how the city will balance extra police security (which many New Yorkers seem to like, regardless of whether or not they want bag checks and what not, because have you seen people hogging subway seats when the police shimmy down the train car?) and other counter-terrorism needs with the budget in upcoming years - we're talking about a lot of police overtime. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg is pulling out all the stops to appeal to the minorities, and today's rumor that he's hired Brian Ellner to join his campaign proves that he wants to show he's a Democrat in Republican's clothing. And suddenly, the Mayor's Republican supporters reach for their Zantac. But this could be the start of a brilliant new ad: Mayor Bloomberg stepping out with his girlfriend Diana Taylor and Ellner with his partner Simon. more ›

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WNBC's terror related stories all have NYC's terror alert and pertinent phone numbers on it, which is nice but maybe a little alarmist.
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More terror alert fun: Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge was in town, meeting with NY officials (like Commissioner Kelly, the Mayor, and Governor Pataki, above photo; the Times articles notes that meetings like that make the Mayor seem aligned with the Bush administration, which poses other issues for the Mayor's reelection effort), and he defended the terror alerts, which may have been outdated. Newsday on NYers dealing with "another day, another terror threat". And like many of the other NY politicians, Senator Hillary Clinton is asking Washington for more terror funding. Finally, check out the city's Office of Emergency Management site. Do you have a go bag? more ›

Of course, the convention is causing all sorts of chaos in others ways: NJ commuters can't take the NJ Transit into Manhattan - they'll be going to Hoboken first then taking the PATH in. the NY Times' map showing where and when the various parties are being held during the Republican National Convention is more like a "Places To Avoid" guide. cityrag has been following the terror drills in midtown (with lots of photos, like the one above). Honestly, Gothamist thinks we see a terror drill every day. Wednesday, about thirty police cars, lights and sirens blazing, sped down Sixth Avenue, and this morning, fifteen police cars were parking themselves in a special formation near Grand Central. What happening? more ›

Subways: Two men died after being hit by subways. Yesterday, a 60 something man leapt in front of a Manhattan bound L at Sutter Avenue in Brooklyn, surviving the impact but dying at the hospital later. The other was a 20 year old hit by an uptown 1 train at Christopher Street early Saturday morning; authorities say he was drunk and fell in but his relatives are going to investigate. more ›

Each day brings new warnings about possible terrorist threats from Al Qaeda and Saddam, or, now, advisories about cell phones and other electronic devices being items of interest when going through airport security, especially with today's bombing of the JW Marriott in Jakarta. Gothamist took a look at CNN's Terror Level Adjustment chart... more ›

Lower Manhattan was stalled, shut down, and frightened as both anthrax white powdery substances at the Canal Street 1 train and a mysterious vehicle on the Brooklyn Bridge were seen. The white substance was in a manila envelope, with the words "Go to hell" written on it. The Fire Department quickly dispatched their Hazmat team to deal with the situation, which hasn't led to any firm findings yet. (The white substance incident reminds Gothamist of the "fear" student art project that snarled life at Union Square last year.) The Brooklyn Bridge incident was also, thankfully, eventless - a man claimed a Middle Eastern man offered to pay him to drive his car across the Bridge. It turned out the car belonged to a Daily News reporter and police think the man was making up the story. more ›

Also, to think that authorities are "chasing down prairie dogs that may have been infected"...
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Heightened terror alert means that the New York papers revisit the scariest places terror could strike, like the subways. Newsday writes about how more police are patrolling the subways, how subway workers' union officials think subways are death traps - exactly the sort of thing that makes Gothamist's morning commute feel really good. Newsday also looks at the MTA infighting of sorts about the state of MTA security in this post September 11 world. more ›

Authorities tried to reassure New Yorkers that NY is prepared for terror attacks, after the national terror alert was raised. Newsday reports more cops are stationed at bridges, tunnels, and landmark buildings. Essentially, the attitude is, "It's no big deal, see, 'cause New York's been on Orange Alert all along." more ›

Terror Alert Raised to Orange more ›

Bush Administration Raises Terror Alert Look at the Terror Alert chart to understand that "High," in this case, is not good. Read John Ashcroft's remarks. Buy some canned meats. more ›