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August 6, 2004/Av 19 5763, Vol. 55, No. 46
Groups ready for threats
RACHEL POMERANCE
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
NEW YORK - With financial institutions in New York and Washington rattled by a reported Al-Qaida threat, Jewish groups are continuing to craft long-term responses to a variety of potential threats.
But except for the World Jewish Congress - which issued security alerts to Jewish communities world-wide - most Jewish groups said the Aug. 1 warning that Al-Qaida had threatened some major U.S. financial institutions didn't affect their already high state of alert.
"I'm not detecting any panic or any alarm" as a result of the recent warnings, said Betty Ehrenberg, director of international and communal affairs for the Orthodox Union, whose office is located in New York City's financial district.
"We stay alert and we're fully aware that Jewish institutions have been designated targets by terrorists, but we're not trying to act alarmed or be alarmed and doing our best to go about our daily business," she said.
Instead, Jewish groups are turning their attention to general emergency pre-paredness for the long haul.
A 200-plus-page manual called "Emergency Planning: Disaster and Crisis Response Systems for Jewish Organ-izations" aims to give them a good start. The manual, which will be officially released in the next few weeks, provides tips for dealing with disasters from floods to terrorism, and asks groups to plan according to their individual risks.
The document was pro-duced by the United Jewish Communities, the coordin-ating body for the North American Jewish federation system, and the Jewish Community Relations Coun-cil of New York, which contracted the John Jay College of Criminal Justice to aid in the effort.
The manual was written in partnership with the Anti-Defamation League, which has authored its own guide on securing Jewish institutions against hate crimes, and which authored one section of the emergency guide.
The manual aims to be a "catalyst to action," said Barry Swartz, who staffs the UJC's emergency committee.
"We want to impress upon local institutions and organizations the need for them to develop an emer-gency plan," he said.
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