Homeland Security chief: Be 'vigilant' at malls
The secretary of Homeland Security warned shoppers at Minnesota's iconic Mall of America and similar venues to be vigilant in the wake of new terrorist threats.
"I'm not telling people to not go to the mall," Secretary Jeh Johnson said Sunday on NBC's Meet The Press. "I think that there needs to be an awareness."
He said, "I'm saying that the public needs to be particularly vigilant."
Hours later, department spokeswoman Marsha Catron said in a statement, "We are not aware of any specific, credible plot against the Mall of America or any other domestic commercial shopping center.''
Mall of America heightened security after a video threatening a terror attack was released purportedly by a Somali militant group with ties to al-Qaeda. The group, al-Shabaab, took responsibility for an attack in 2013 at the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, that left more than 60 people dead.
The video released online focused mostly on the conflict between Kenya and Somalia and the Westgate shopping mall attack. The video calls for similar attacks at the Mall of America and elsewhere.
"If just a handful of mujahedin fighters could bring Kenya to a complete standstill for nearly a week, imagine what a dedicated mujahedin in the West could do to the American or Jewish-owned shopping centers across the world," an unidentified man says on the video.
"What if such an attack was to occur in the Mall of America in Minnesota? Or the West Edmonton Mall in Canada? Or in London's Oxford Street?" the man says, encouraging supporters to "hurry up, hasten towards heaven and do not hesitate."
The Mall of America, among the largest shopping malls in the world, employs more than 12,000 people at more than 500 stores and 50 restaurants. It is the world's busiest mall, bringing in more than 40 million visitors annually.
Mall officials issued a statement saying they take any potential threat seriously.
"Mall of America has implemented extra security precautions. Some may be noticeable to guests, and others won't be," the statement said. "The safety and security of our guests, employees and tenants remains our top priority."
Mall spokeswoman Sarah Schmidt told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that mall traffic and activity appeared normal Sunday.
Nancy Cashion and her daughter, Melanie Isabell, told the newspaper they were in the mall 45 minutes before seeing a uniformed security officer. They were unconcerned by the video threat.
"There's probably a lot of threats we don't even hear about," Isabell said.
The FBI and Department of Homeland Security issued a statement Sunday saying U.S. officials were aware of the call for "Westgate-style" attacks against shopping malls in the USA and elsewhere.
The statement said Homeland Security and the FBI have been working closely with state and local authorities in recent months to "prevent and mitigate these types of threats."
Al-Shabaab, based in southern Somalia, was declared a terror organization under U.S. law in 2008. The group, which pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda in 2012, took responsibility for an attack Friday targeting government ministers at a Mogadishu hotel. The attack killed 25.
In 2013, an al-Shabaab video bragged about successes at recruiting Somalis from Minnesota to fight for their case. Minneapolis has a large Somali community.
Sen Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., told WCCO-TV she was confident the mall was well-protected.
"We've been in contact with Homeland Security, and I know that everyone is focused on how to best protect the mall," she said. Klobuchar said Minnesota has "been very successful in going after these guys," citing 20 indictments and nine convictions involving al-Shabaab members.
Johnson, who made appearances on five Sunday shows, said the video threat reflects the militant effort to encourage supporters to conduct attacks in their homelands.
"We're in a new phase now, and I'm afraid that this most recent video release reflects that," Johnson said on ABC's This Week.
Contributing: KARE-TV, Minneapolis-St. Paul