9/11 Commission heads criticize FBI

WASHINGTON, DC, United States (UPI) — The leaders of the 9/11 commission have criticized the FBI for failing to implement reforms to facilitate the prevention of terrorist attacks.

Former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean, who headed the 9/11 commission`s investigation into the government`s response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and former U.S. Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind., vice chairman of the commission, said the FBI, which has been hampered by high turnover of senior officials, has been moving too slowly to efficiently penetrate terrorist groups, USA Today reported Friday.

The men told the newspaper that agency officials had promised to improve its intelligence operations if the commission scrapped a recommendation that the bureau be split into two groups, one for traditional law enforcement and one for domestic intelligence.

However, two years after the promise, ‘they are not even close to where they said they would be,’ Kean said.

FBI Director Robert Mueller defended the pace of the restructuring last month, saying the agency has been hiring hundreds of fresh agents and stepping up its domestic intelligence gathering operations.

Copyright 2006 by United Press International