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LONDON, Friday (AFP) The United States working with foreign intelligence agencies has so far detained about 2,700 al-Qaeda suspects, President George W. Bush's Homeland Security Adviser Tom Ridge said.

Ridge warned that America and its allies will face the threat of terrorism "for the foreseeable future", adding that al-Qaeda "remains our most immediate and serious threat".

"Thanks to the substantial growth in law enforcement and intelligence exchanges among 90 countries, we have detained approximately 2,700 suspects" from the network headed by Osama bin Laden and blamed for last year's September 11 attacks on the US, Ridge said in a speech in London.

"However, the recent bombing in Bali, the attack on the French oil tanker, the murders of Europeans in Pakistan, and the killing of a Marine in Kuwait suggest that this organization retains the capability to orchestrate attacks and to inspire sympathizers," he added.

In a speech at the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College in London, Ridge, who was appointed to his post after the September 11 terrorist strikes, said some Europeans believed that the United States was overreacting in its "war on terror".

"However, this new terrorist is unlike any other we have faced," he said.

"Today, we are confronted by sophisticated, decentralized terrorist networks spread across many countries, linked by information technology, and enabled by far-flung financial networks and ideological supporters."

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