BRITAIN IN THE CROSSHAIRS

Posted at 8:49 a.m. ET

The British prime minister, Gordon Brown, has made the stunning revelation that more than 20 terror attacks against Britain are being planned in Pakistan.

More than twenty serious terrorist plots to stage attacks in Britain are being planned in Pakistan, Gordon Brown said.

The Prime Minister named Pakistan as a haven for terrorists planning attacks in Britain, revealing that around three quarters of the most advanced plots monitored by MI5 are have Pakistani links.

Officials say that the Security Service is aware of around 30 serious plots at any given moment, suggesting that at least 21 of them are tied to Pakistani groups.

If this is true, how many plots are ongoing against the United States? It appears that the reporting on terror has taken on greater urgency in the UK than here.

On a visit to Islamabad, the Prime Minister delivered a blunt demand to President Ali Asif Zardari to improve his government's work to prevent al-Qaeda and other groups operating in the lawless area that borders Afghanistan.

"The time has come for action not words," Mr Brown told Mr Zardari.

As Renee Nielsen has reported to Urgent Agenda, it is accepted in India that the recent Mumbai terror attacks had their roots in Pakistan.

We have to be on guard here, especially during the transition to a new administration.  Recent articles indicate that we are very vulnerable, in our cities, to a Mumbai-type assault.  Hotels are particularly vulnerable.  Washington will be filled with visitors during the inauguration.  Because of the economic crisis, we have stopped thinking about terror.  Big mistake.

December 14, 2008.