Intel warning

CIA boss says IS can attack US even after losing Raqqa

Islamic State militants are capable of orchestrating and carrying out an attack against the United States, possibly downing an airplane, even after being evicted from their self-declared Syrian capital of Raqqa, the CIA director said Thursday.

"IS' capability to conduct an external operation remains," Pompeo said. "But I wouldn't put them in a singular bucket. Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula has for a long time had this mission statement, which includes the taking down of a commercial airliner bound for a western country. Certainly, among those would be the United States."

Speaking a day after President Donald Trump's acting homeland security chief invoked the possibility of another 9/11-style attack, Pompeo said America's enemies around the world "are intent upon using commercial aviation as their vector to present a threat to the West." However, he also worried about a terrorist capability "we just don't see."

The typically blunt threat assessment came during a wide-ranging discussion at a Washington think tank, in which Pompeo also underscored President Donald Trump's intent to counteract North Korea. He said Pyongyang is only months away from perfecting its nuclear weapons capabilities.