Link: Security Beat
Anyone who works at an airport or aboard a cruise ship will have their identities checked against government watch lists, as is the case with commercial airline passengers.
The change, included in the intelligence bill passed by Congress last week, means hundreds of thousands of additional names will be compared with those on two lists -- one for people suspected of terrorism, the other for people the government says require additional scrutiny for some other reason.
Cruise passengers, but not crews, already are checked against the lists within 15 minutes of a ship's departure. Once President Bush signs the bill into law, it will require passengers and crews to be checked before the ship sets sail.
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), who sponsored the cruise ship provision, told The Associated Press that as many as 5,000 passengers and 1,500 crew members travel on each ship. "What you have is a floating city of thousands of people. You cannot be too cautious."
Comments