THE anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, already heralded by an attempt to assassinate the U.S.-backed Afghan president, has prompted heightened security in many parts of the world. Whilst “homeland security” in the United States will be extremely tight — with fighter jets resuming 24-hour air patrols over Washington and New York — much of the rest of the globe is also on alert. In Kabul, the Turkish-led International Security Assistance Force said it had increased security measures after Thursday’s bid to kill President Hamid Karzai in Kandahar and a car bomb that killed 16 people in the Afghan capital the same day. The attacks sparked fears of a wave of violence to mark this week’s anniversary of the Sept. 11 suicide-hijacks.Officials in neighboring Pakistan said President Pervez Musharraf’s pro-Western government had beefed up security at what it had identified as potential targets. The Pakistani anti-terrorism cell works closely with U.S. officials in tracking down fugitive Taliban or al Qaeda suspects who may have crossed into Pakistan or semi-autonomous tribal regions to escape pursuit by U.S.-led forces. Many fugitives may have melted into the local population in Pakistan, where Islamic militants have staged several attacks on Christian and Western targets in the past year. U.S. diplomatic missions and military bases abroad have remained on high alert for the past year and officials said no extra measures were foreseen for the anniversary week. “We have been at Security Level 1 since Sept. 11 last year,” said a spokeswoman at the U.S. embassy in Berlin. In the Philippines, a top police official said security remained tight in key establishments in Manila, such as an oil depot near the presidential palace, Manila’s international airport and the U.S. Embassy. A Philippine National Police spokesman said the entire force had been placed on higher alert and intelligence monitoring had been intensified. The U.S. consulate will stay open, but will fly the Stars and Stripes at half-mast in mourning, a spokeswoman said. In China, Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways said bookings to the U.S. for this week had dropped and one of the two daily flights it operates from Hong Kong to Los Angeles had been canceled for today and tomorrow. Italian officials, who were angered when the U.S. issued an Easter travel warning for four Italian cities, kept silent on security measures, as did their Dutch counterparts. (SD-Agencies)