US Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge announced Monday the government is creating a new task force to help coordinate antiterrorism efforts, citing upcoming gatherings that may be attractive to terrorism targets.

"With so many symbolic gatherings in the next few months, we must be aggressive," Ridge said in remarks prepared for delivery before a meeting of the Radio and Television News Directors Association in Las Vegas, Nevada.

"These targets of opportunity for the terrorists, are opportunities that can't be missed to tighten our security," he said.

Ridge appealed to national, state, local and private authorities to be "better prepared" with an eye toward a series of events, which begin with the dedication of the World War II Memorial in Washington on May 29.

The events include the meeting in Georgia of the Group of Eight industrialized nations on June 8-10, the Independence Day on July 4, the Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts in late July and the Republican National Convention in New York from August 30 to September 2.

The task force being formed includes Homeland Security, the FBI, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Energy and the Department of Justice.

Ridge said there was no specific intelligence about possible attacks, and the preparedness push is based on analysis.

Source: Xinhua