Fawaz Yahya al-Rabeei (FBI photo)

U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft is warning Americans to be on the highest state of alert, after the FBI issued a new terrorist warning of a possible attack against the United States, or U.S. interests, as early as Tuesday.

Appearing in San Antonio, Texas a short while ago, Mr. Ashcroft said the U.S. seeks the help of the public in gathering information on at least 17 people the FBI considers to be "extremely dangerous" and planning a terrorist attack.

Mr. Ashcroft provided no specifics, but the FBI has urged the police and public to be on the lookout for Fawaz Yahya al-Rabeei among others. He is a dark-haired, bearded Yemeni man in his early 20s.

Earlier, part of New York's biggest bus terminal was evacuated and closed because of a suspicious bag. Reuters reports the terminal later reopened for business after officials found nothing in the bag to cause concern. New York has been on high alert since the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center killed nearly 3,000 people.

Authorities say they discovered the plot while questioning al-Qaida detainees held at the U.S. naval based at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The FBI says the warning is based on credible intelligence, but it did not list a specific target, except to say it could be domestic or a U.S. interest in Yemen. Security at the U.S. Embassy in Yemen has been tightened, but consular services continue as usual.

The alert identifies Mr. al-Rabeei as a Yemeni national who was born in Saudi Arabia in 1979. He is said to go by a number of aliases, including "Furqan." The warning says there is no evidence he has already entered the United States.

The latest warning is the most specific since the September 11 attacks on the United States. The FBI has issued three previous warnings, the last extended through the Winter Olympics now underway in Salt Lake City.

Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.

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