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U.S. Cities Heighten Security

U.S. counterterror officials tell CBS News that the Homeland Security Department is expected to raise the terror threat level to Orange for rail and subways following the attacks in London. Cities around the country already displayed a heightened state of alert.

President Bush, in Scotland for the G-8 summit, urged vigilance.

The Homeland Security Department says there are no indications of an imminent attack on U.S. interests, a Homeland Security official told CBS News Correspondent Peter Maer.

Other officials were monitoring events in London from the White House Situation Room. A Homeland Security spokeswoman said the department was in close contact with British intelligence and other agencies.

President Bush had a 10-minute video conference call with National Security advisers back in the U.S., reports CBS News White House Correspondent Mark Knoller.

In a brief speech,

to be "extra vigilant" as they head to work after the deadly explosions in London.

"The war on terrorism goes on," he said. "We will not yield to these people. We will not yield to the terrorists."

Terrorism analyst Neil Livingstone tells CBS radio affiliate WTOP in Washington that "it's not a question of if, but when" the U.S. will be attacked again by al Qaeda.

"This is a war that's going to have peaks and valleys," Livingstone said. "Since 9/11, nothing has happened. A lot of Americans think that Osama bin Laden's on the run, therefore we have nothing more to fear."

At the Pentagon, police officers said they had been placed on a heightened alert shortly after the London attacks.
Security around the massive home of the Defense Department, hit in the Sept. 11 attacks, was more visible than normal Thursday, with police officers in squad cars, on bicycles and on foot deployed in greater numbers than usual on the perimeter roadways and the Metro station.

The explosions on London's transit system prompted heightened security on Washington's subway system. A Metro spokeswoman said officials were "ramping up security immediately," including the use of bomb sniffing dogs. Officers will have a higher visibility, she said, and will be carrying machine guns.

At the Farragut West station, the one closest to the White House, Maer saw transit police using announcements and flashing signs to remind passengers to watch for anything suspicious.

They did: There was a report of suspicious package at the Rockville, Md., stop Thursday morning. It turned out to be a bag of trash.

About 1.2 million people a day ride Washington's buses and trains.

In New York, Gov. George Pataki said transit systems would operate normally Thursday.

"Just show a little bit more alertness, look around, if there are any unattended bags or packages or backpacks, let the authorities know," he told WCBS-AM.

In Los Angeles, a police official said police had activated a special command center and officials were meeting to decide whether to upgrade security levels around the city.

A spokeswoman for the Chicago Transit Authority said transit officials were working with Chicago Police on additional security measures. CTA spokeswoman Kimberly Myles said announcements were being made to riders to be aware of their surroundings and to alert transit workers about suspicious packages.

In Massachusetts, Gov. Mitt Romney raised the security level on Boston's transit system as a precaution.

"I've directed that we assume Code Orange status with regard to our subway system, and that means bringing out additional resources, scrambling additional personnel to be able to monitor those who come out of the subway system, and to assure that we're moving as quickly as we can to protect the public," Romney told CBS radio station WBZ.

"Amtrak has increased its security threat level," spokesman Clifford Black told WTOP. "We're putting more resources into our security efforts ... We'll continue at this heightened security level until we have a better understanding of the events in London."

Jittery traders on Wall Street sent stocks sharply lower, as investors abandoned stocks and fled to bonds, seen as a safer investment during uncertain times.

The U.S. Treasury Department wa monitoring global markets following the attacks in London. In a written statement, Treasury Secretary John Snow said, "I will stay in touch with world financial leaders."

Snow has already contacted British Chancellor of the Treasury Gordon Brown to offer any U.S. assistance "as they deal with this tragic situation."

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