US counter-terror officials are warning of an increased risk of an attack this summer, given al-Qaeda’s apparent interest in summertime strikes and increased al-Qaeda training in the Afghan-Pakistani border region.

The White House has called an urgent, multi-agency meeting on Thursday to discuss the potential threat, ABC News has reported. Top intelligence and law enforcement officials have been summoned to report on steps to minimise or counter the threat and what steps are being taken to tighten security at government buildings, ABC said. The meeting would be one of a number convened in light of new intelligence and information learned from the recent failed car bomb attempts in London, ABC reported, citing a senior US administration official.

The unnamed official told ABC the level of concern of a new attack in the United States was now higher than it had been in some time.

However, later in the day, the White House denied that it had convened any such meeting.

On Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told the editorial board of The Chicago Tribune that he had a “gut feeling” about a new period of increased risk.

He based his assessment on earlier patterns of terrorists in Europe and intelligence he would not disclose. “Summertime seems to be appealing to them,” Chertoff said in his discussion with the newspaper about terrorists. “We worry that they are rebuilding their activities.”

Other US counterterrorism officials shared Chertoff’s concern and said that al-Qaeda and like-minded groups have been able to plot and train more freely in the tribal areas along the Afghan-Pakistani border in recent months. Osama bin Laden and his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, are believed to be hiding in the rugged region.

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