By Alex Kingsbury
U-Wire Washington Bureau

Posted 5:30 p.m. Sept. 17

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – The U.S. is working to secure international support for possible retaliation against the perpetrators of the worst terrorist act in American history.

While authorities continue to speculate who is to blame, consensus seems to have settled on Saudi-born international terrorist Osama bin Laden.

In an unprecedented move, NATO voted last week to evoke Article 5 of its charter, which stipulates that an attack on any NATO member is an attack on the group as a whole.

The move gives apparent automatic support of NATO members to an as yet undeclared response.

While the move is a strong vote of confidence for President Bush, the support of Europe may not be assured. The NATO vote gives its members authority to use whatever action it deems necessary including the use of “armed force.”

As the President and the Secretary of State Colin Powell move to generate support for an attack on the suspects, the FBI and law enforcement agencies are in pursuit of suspects, raiding buildings in Florida, Boston and Germany.

President Bush said Monday he wants bin Laden brought to justice and would stick by the old frontier saying “`Wanted, dead or alive.'”