US Department of Homeland Security to Increase Airport Security Measures

DHS Secretary said that the US Department of Homeland Security is planning to increase airport security measures.

 

WASHINGTON, January 16 (Sputnik) — The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is planning to increase airport security measures in the coming period in response to recent open-source threats, DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson said on Friday.

“We enhanced aviation security just recently, last week, and we’re looking at doing more in the short term in reaction to some of the threat stream we’re seeing now, open source public threat streams,” Johnson stated at an aviation conference. “We continue to evaluate whether more is necessary.”

Johnson later told the press that his department’s Monday announcement of increased aviation security measures and increased security at federal buildings around the country and in major cities “should be self-evident to the public.”

The Secretary cited the recent terror attacks in Paris as well as “the open public calls from terrorist organizations for attacks on western objectives” as the reason for the enhanced homeland security precautions.

The Department of Homeland Security is currently assessing additional security measures and will deliver their recommendations in the short term, Secretary Johnson said.

The increased security measures came after the publication of the latest edition of the al-Qaeda propaganda magazine “Inspire” which included a recipe for creating a hard to detect bomb. According to US media reports, the magazine encouraged jihadists to use explosives on airplanes and event instructed bombers where to sit.