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London Police Disrupt Terrorist Plot to Blow Up Aircraft in Mid-Flight
Thursday, August 10, 2006
THEY HAVED BANNED THE FOLLOWING: SODA'S, HAIR GEL, LOTIONS, (ect.)
FOx News
U.S. Raises Flight Threat Levels to Severe, Imposes Liquid Ban After British Plot
LONDON British authorities thwarted a terrorist plot to blow up several aircraft mid-flight between the United States and Britain using explosives smuggled in hand luggage, officials said Thursday.
Britain's Home Secretary John Reid said the alleged plot was "significant" and that terrorists aimed to "bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flightexplosions, causing a considerable loss of life."
Click here to read the Sky News story.
Police arrested a number of people overnight in London after a major covert counterterrorism operation that had lasted several months, but did not immediately say how many.
The U.S. government responded by raising its threat assessment to the highest level for commercial flights from Britain to the United States early Thursday.
"We believe that these arrests (in London) have significantly disrupted the threat, but we cannot be sure that the threat has been entirely eliminated or the plot completely thwarted," said U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.
Chertoff added in the statement there was no indication of current plots within the U.S.
Britain's national threat level was also raised to critical a warning level that indicates the likelihood of an imminent terrorist attack. The threat rating was posted on the Web site of Britain's MI5 the British domestic spy agency.
Prime Minister Tony Blair, vacationing in the Caribbean, had briefed President Bush on the situation overnight, Blair's office said.
The British Department of Transport advised all passengers that they would not be permitted to carry any hand baggage on board any aircraft departing from any airport in the country. Passengers faced delays as tighter security was hastily enforced at the country's airports and additional measures were put in place for all flights.
Heathrow airport, the busiest in Europe, was closed to most European flights
The closure on incoming traffic applied to flights of three hours or less, affecting most of the incoming flights from Europe, an airport spokesman said on condition of anonymity in line with airport policy.
Congestion was building up rapidly at the airport as authorities enforced strict new regulations banning most hand baggage.
British Airways said some flights were likely to be canceled. Laptop computers, mobile phones, iPods, and remote controls were among items banned from being carried on its planes.
"I'm terrified really, I'm really scared," said Sarah Challiner, 20, who was waiting to board a flight from Manchester's airport.
Hannah Pillinger, 24, seemed less concerned by the announcement. "Eight hours without an iPod, that's the most inconvenient thing," she said, waiting at the Manchester airport.
London's Heathrow airport was the departure point for a devastating terrorist attack on a Pan Am airplane on Dec. 21, 1988. The blast over Lockerbie, Scotland, killed all 259 people aboard Pan Am Flight 103 and 11 people on the ground.
The explosive was hidden in a portable radio which was hidden in checked baggage.
A Scottish court convicted Libyan intelligence agent Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi of the bombing in 2001 and sentenced him to life imprisonment. A second Libyan was acquitted.
In 2003, Libya officially accepted responsibility for the attack and agreed to pay relatives of each bombing victim at least $5 million.
CNN
UK foils aircraft terror plot
Delay expected at world airports
Thursday, August 10, 2006; Posted: 5:09 a.m. EDT (09:09 GMT)
A statement from Scotland Yard said it believed the attacks would have targeted UK flights to the U.S.
Great Britain
United States
Acts of terror
or Create Your Own
Manage Alerts | What Is This?
LONDON, England (CNN) -- British police say they have arrested 21 people and disrupted a plot to blow up planes in mid-flight, prompting authorities to raise the nation's threat level to "critical."
The highest possible alert level, raised on Thursday by the British Home Office, means "an attack is expected imminently," and authorities say no hand luggage is allowed onto planes leaving UK airports. (Full story)
The plot was "intended to be mass murder on an unimaginable scale," Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Paul Stephenson said.
Major delays are expected at key airports around the world, with Brussels Airport in Belgium among the first to cancel flights to the UK, news agencies reported.
London's Heathrow airport is now closed to most European flights, a BAA official said. BAA owns and operates seven UK airports, including Heathrow.
The aim of the alleged plot was to explode devices carried in handheld luggage -- especially on flights from Britain to the United States, according to Scotland Yard.
London's Metropolitan Police said a months-long intelligence operation, according to a Scotland Yard news release.
"This is a major operation which inevitably will be lengthy and complex," Scotland Yard said in a statement.
Britain's Home Secretary John Reid called the alleged plot significant and said it was designed to "bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flight explosions, causing a considerable loss of life."
"We are doing everything possible to disrupt any further terrorist activity. This will mean major disruption at all UK airports," Reid said, adding the move to raise the alert level was "precautionary."
Hand luggage will not be allowed into the cabin of a plane and passengers will only be allowed to take a wallet, travel documents and other essential items in a plastic bag.
"All passengers must be hand searched, and their footwear and all the items they are carrying must be X-ray screened," a BAA statement added. (Full story)
Prime Minister Tony Blair's had briefed U.S. President George W. Bush on the situation overnight, his office said.
Across the Atlantic, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security raised its alert threat to the highest level of "severe," or red, for commercial flights originating in the United Kingdom and bound for America.
Meanwhile, the threat level has been raised to "high," or orange for all commercial flights operating in or coming to the United States, a DHS statement said.
"Due to the nature of the threat revealed by this investigation, we are prohibiting any liquids, including beverages, hair gels, and lotions from being carried on the airplane," the statement said.
Shares in European airlines fell on the news, with British Airways shares skidding at the open. (Full story)
The alleged terror plot comes more than five years after Briton Richard Reid attempted to detonate explosives hidden in his sneakers on an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami in December 2001, only a few months after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington.
Passengers thwarted his plan, and the plane landed safely in Boston. Reid pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in October 2002 and is serving a life sentence at the nation's super-maximum security prison in Florence, Colorado.
msnbc
U.K.: Plot to bomb U.S.-bound planes foiled
Britain bans hand luggage fearing 'liquid chemical' device; arrests made
Image: Policeman patrols Heathrow airport.
Stephen Hird / Reuters
A policeman patrols Heathrow airport in London on Thursday, hours after British police said they had thwarted a plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight between Britain and the United States.
LONDON - British police thwarted on Thursday what they said was a plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight between Britain and the United States and arrested more than 15 people.
Both countries stepped up security, causing severe delays at airports following the revelation of the plot, which a police source said was believed to involve a liquid chemical device.
The police acting with the security service MI5 are investigating an alleged plot to bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flight explosions, causing a considerable loss of life, Interior Minister John Reid said.
Story continues below ↓ advertisement
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security raised the threat level for all commercial aircraft to high and U.S. authorities banned liquids, including drinks, from all U.S. commercial flights.
Britains security services raised the threat level in the country to critical from severe, the highest of its five ratings which means an attack is expected imminently.
The British Airports Authority said it had asked all European carriers to suspend flights to Londons main Heathrow airport where new security measures caused severe delays.
The news came amid high international tension over the war in Lebanon and the week British Prime Minister Tony Blair headed on holiday to the Caribbean.
London police said they believed the intention was to target flights from Britain to the United States.
Shares in European airlines fell on the news, with British Airways shares opening nearly 5 percent lower. The pound also fell against the dollar and the euro.
Blairs office said the prime minister had briefed President Bush on the operation during the night and had been in constant contact with Britain over the situation.
Severe threat
Reid said it was a very significant plot.
We are doing everything possible to disrupt any further terrorist activity, he said in a statement. This will mean major disruption at all UK airports.
Air passengers found they could take little on board.
We cannot take on anything except wallets, passports and medicine, Dana Cojocaru-Ivoska, 28, trying to get on a flight to return to her home in St. Louis, Missouri.
The security alert comes 13 months after four British Islamic extremist suicide bombers killed 52 people and injured about 700 on Londons transport network.
In a speech on Wednesday, Reid said Britain was in the most sustained period of severe threat since the end of World War Two and warned there was no room for complacency.
A police source said more than 15 people had been arrested.
We dont think that it was planned to happen today, the source told Reuters. We had intelligence and we had to move against what was a planned attack.
The plan was to take a ready-made explosive device rather than something which would be made up on board, the source said.
Weak spot in security
Independent terrorism expert Paul Beaver said hand luggage was a weak spot in airport security.
A laptop computer can carry enough explosives to blow up an aircraft, he said. Hold baggage and cargo can be sniffed for explosives. You cant do that for hand luggage at the moment. The technology is there, but its time consuming and expensive.
Beaver said the nature of the alleged plot suggested a connection to al-Qaida.
In the last two months al-Qaida promised that it would avenge Iraq and Afghanistan by attacking British and American aviation assets -- I see a direct link with that, he said.
Britain has come under fire from Islamic militants for its military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Blair has also come under strong criticism at home and abroad for following the U.S. lead and refusing to call for an immediate cease-fire in the conflict between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas.
British Airways said no hand baggage would be allowed on any of its planes leaving British airports. It said no electrical or battery powered items would be allowed in the cabin, including laptops and mobile phones.
British Airports Authority said all passengers on flights to the United States would be subject to a secondary search at the boarding gate and all liquids would also be removed.
The Home Office Web Site showed the threat rating had been raised to critical from severe earlier on Thursday. Britain has a five level rating for security threats, ranging from low to critical, which is the highest level.
Terror plot sparks long lines at Newark airport
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 08/10/06
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEWARK U.S. air travelers poured out liquids, opened their bags for inspection and endured long waits this morning as airports heightened security and some flights were canceled or delayed after the discovery of a terror plot aimed at air service from Britain to the United States.
New Jersey's homeland security chief, Richard Canas, said there were no specific threats for Newark Liberty International Airport or anything else in the state, as far as
authorities know.
But travelers at Newark's Terminal B, which handles many international flights, were caught this morning in one of the worst airport screening lines in recent memory.
The line stretched the entire length of the terminal, roughly six football fields, and
was barely moving.
Andra Racibarskas, of Chatham, was trying to get to Michigan to pick up her daughter from camp.
"Checking in was very easy,'' Racibarskas said. "It took one minute curbside. It took
one minute to get my boarding pass. It took 15 minutes to find the end of the line. This line is at least four hours long. As a frequent flyer, I've never seen anything like
this, even after 9-11.''
The government said it was banning liquids including beverages, hair gels and lotions from flights, explaining only that liquids emerged as a risk from the investigation in Britain.
At Newark, screeners and Transportation Security Administration agents walked up and down the line urging passengers to discard anything liquid in their carry-on baggage. Garbage cans rapidly filled with hair gel, shampoo and cologne.
Robert Coppola, of Dover Township, was trying to fly to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., but was unhappy to learn he'd have to get rid of his Cool Water cologne. He said the ban was aggravating, but that he'd rather be safe than smell good.
Canas said he was briefed at 1 a.m. by federal authorities. He said increased airport security regulations, including the ban of most liquids on domestic flights, was likely to continue.
"This will go on until they turn over every rock. We're looking at weeks here,'' Canas
said.
Canas also said NJ Transit increased security on the commuter railroad.
The U.S. government raised its threat warning to the highest level for commercial
flights from Britain to the United States and raised slightly the alert for all flights
coming or going from the U.S.
It is the first time the red alert level in the Homeland Security warning system has
been invoked, although there have been brief periods in the past when the orange level was applied. Homeland Security defines the red alert as designating a "severe risk of terrorist attacks.''
Official: Check before going to airport
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 08/10/06
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
"We advise folks to allow extra time for longer security lines. People should check
with their airlines before heading to the airport,'' said Pasquale DiFulco, spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty International airports.
"We remain on a heightened state of alert,'' DiFulco said. "We've got a heavy police
presence. We're just trying to maintain things as normal as possible.''
Thursday, August 10, 2006
THEY HAVED BANNED THE FOLLOWING: SODA'S, HAIR GEL, LOTIONS, (ect.)
FOx News
U.S. Raises Flight Threat Levels to Severe, Imposes Liquid Ban After British Plot
LONDON British authorities thwarted a terrorist plot to blow up several aircraft mid-flight between the United States and Britain using explosives smuggled in hand luggage, officials said Thursday.
Britain's Home Secretary John Reid said the alleged plot was "significant" and that terrorists aimed to "bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flightexplosions, causing a considerable loss of life."
Click here to read the Sky News story.
Police arrested a number of people overnight in London after a major covert counterterrorism operation that had lasted several months, but did not immediately say how many.
The U.S. government responded by raising its threat assessment to the highest level for commercial flights from Britain to the United States early Thursday.
"We believe that these arrests (in London) have significantly disrupted the threat, but we cannot be sure that the threat has been entirely eliminated or the plot completely thwarted," said U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.
Chertoff added in the statement there was no indication of current plots within the U.S.
Britain's national threat level was also raised to critical a warning level that indicates the likelihood of an imminent terrorist attack. The threat rating was posted on the Web site of Britain's MI5 the British domestic spy agency.
Prime Minister Tony Blair, vacationing in the Caribbean, had briefed President Bush on the situation overnight, Blair's office said.
The British Department of Transport advised all passengers that they would not be permitted to carry any hand baggage on board any aircraft departing from any airport in the country. Passengers faced delays as tighter security was hastily enforced at the country's airports and additional measures were put in place for all flights.
Heathrow airport, the busiest in Europe, was closed to most European flights
The closure on incoming traffic applied to flights of three hours or less, affecting most of the incoming flights from Europe, an airport spokesman said on condition of anonymity in line with airport policy.
Congestion was building up rapidly at the airport as authorities enforced strict new regulations banning most hand baggage.
British Airways said some flights were likely to be canceled. Laptop computers, mobile phones, iPods, and remote controls were among items banned from being carried on its planes.
"I'm terrified really, I'm really scared," said Sarah Challiner, 20, who was waiting to board a flight from Manchester's airport.
Hannah Pillinger, 24, seemed less concerned by the announcement. "Eight hours without an iPod, that's the most inconvenient thing," she said, waiting at the Manchester airport.
London's Heathrow airport was the departure point for a devastating terrorist attack on a Pan Am airplane on Dec. 21, 1988. The blast over Lockerbie, Scotland, killed all 259 people aboard Pan Am Flight 103 and 11 people on the ground.
The explosive was hidden in a portable radio which was hidden in checked baggage.
A Scottish court convicted Libyan intelligence agent Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi of the bombing in 2001 and sentenced him to life imprisonment. A second Libyan was acquitted.
In 2003, Libya officially accepted responsibility for the attack and agreed to pay relatives of each bombing victim at least $5 million.
CNN
UK foils aircraft terror plot
Delay expected at world airports
Thursday, August 10, 2006; Posted: 5:09 a.m. EDT (09:09 GMT)
A statement from Scotland Yard said it believed the attacks would have targeted UK flights to the U.S.
Great Britain
United States
Acts of terror
or Create Your Own
Manage Alerts | What Is This?
LONDON, England (CNN) -- British police say they have arrested 21 people and disrupted a plot to blow up planes in mid-flight, prompting authorities to raise the nation's threat level to "critical."
The highest possible alert level, raised on Thursday by the British Home Office, means "an attack is expected imminently," and authorities say no hand luggage is allowed onto planes leaving UK airports. (Full story)
The plot was "intended to be mass murder on an unimaginable scale," Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Paul Stephenson said.
Major delays are expected at key airports around the world, with Brussels Airport in Belgium among the first to cancel flights to the UK, news agencies reported.
London's Heathrow airport is now closed to most European flights, a BAA official said. BAA owns and operates seven UK airports, including Heathrow.
The aim of the alleged plot was to explode devices carried in handheld luggage -- especially on flights from Britain to the United States, according to Scotland Yard.
London's Metropolitan Police said a months-long intelligence operation, according to a Scotland Yard news release.
"This is a major operation which inevitably will be lengthy and complex," Scotland Yard said in a statement.
Britain's Home Secretary John Reid called the alleged plot significant and said it was designed to "bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flight explosions, causing a considerable loss of life."
"We are doing everything possible to disrupt any further terrorist activity. This will mean major disruption at all UK airports," Reid said, adding the move to raise the alert level was "precautionary."
Hand luggage will not be allowed into the cabin of a plane and passengers will only be allowed to take a wallet, travel documents and other essential items in a plastic bag.
"All passengers must be hand searched, and their footwear and all the items they are carrying must be X-ray screened," a BAA statement added. (Full story)
Prime Minister Tony Blair's had briefed U.S. President George W. Bush on the situation overnight, his office said.
Across the Atlantic, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security raised its alert threat to the highest level of "severe," or red, for commercial flights originating in the United Kingdom and bound for America.
Meanwhile, the threat level has been raised to "high," or orange for all commercial flights operating in or coming to the United States, a DHS statement said.
"Due to the nature of the threat revealed by this investigation, we are prohibiting any liquids, including beverages, hair gels, and lotions from being carried on the airplane," the statement said.
Shares in European airlines fell on the news, with British Airways shares skidding at the open. (Full story)
The alleged terror plot comes more than five years after Briton Richard Reid attempted to detonate explosives hidden in his sneakers on an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami in December 2001, only a few months after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington.
Passengers thwarted his plan, and the plane landed safely in Boston. Reid pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in October 2002 and is serving a life sentence at the nation's super-maximum security prison in Florence, Colorado.
msnbc
U.K.: Plot to bomb U.S.-bound planes foiled
Britain bans hand luggage fearing 'liquid chemical' device; arrests made
Image: Policeman patrols Heathrow airport.
Stephen Hird / Reuters
A policeman patrols Heathrow airport in London on Thursday, hours after British police said they had thwarted a plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight between Britain and the United States.
LONDON - British police thwarted on Thursday what they said was a plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight between Britain and the United States and arrested more than 15 people.
Both countries stepped up security, causing severe delays at airports following the revelation of the plot, which a police source said was believed to involve a liquid chemical device.
The police acting with the security service MI5 are investigating an alleged plot to bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flight explosions, causing a considerable loss of life, Interior Minister John Reid said.
Story continues below ↓ advertisement
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security raised the threat level for all commercial aircraft to high and U.S. authorities banned liquids, including drinks, from all U.S. commercial flights.
Britains security services raised the threat level in the country to critical from severe, the highest of its five ratings which means an attack is expected imminently.
The British Airports Authority said it had asked all European carriers to suspend flights to Londons main Heathrow airport where new security measures caused severe delays.
The news came amid high international tension over the war in Lebanon and the week British Prime Minister Tony Blair headed on holiday to the Caribbean.
London police said they believed the intention was to target flights from Britain to the United States.
Shares in European airlines fell on the news, with British Airways shares opening nearly 5 percent lower. The pound also fell against the dollar and the euro.
Blairs office said the prime minister had briefed President Bush on the operation during the night and had been in constant contact with Britain over the situation.
Severe threat
Reid said it was a very significant plot.
We are doing everything possible to disrupt any further terrorist activity, he said in a statement. This will mean major disruption at all UK airports.
Air passengers found they could take little on board.
We cannot take on anything except wallets, passports and medicine, Dana Cojocaru-Ivoska, 28, trying to get on a flight to return to her home in St. Louis, Missouri.
The security alert comes 13 months after four British Islamic extremist suicide bombers killed 52 people and injured about 700 on Londons transport network.
In a speech on Wednesday, Reid said Britain was in the most sustained period of severe threat since the end of World War Two and warned there was no room for complacency.
A police source said more than 15 people had been arrested.
We dont think that it was planned to happen today, the source told Reuters. We had intelligence and we had to move against what was a planned attack.
The plan was to take a ready-made explosive device rather than something which would be made up on board, the source said.
Weak spot in security
Independent terrorism expert Paul Beaver said hand luggage was a weak spot in airport security.
A laptop computer can carry enough explosives to blow up an aircraft, he said. Hold baggage and cargo can be sniffed for explosives. You cant do that for hand luggage at the moment. The technology is there, but its time consuming and expensive.
Beaver said the nature of the alleged plot suggested a connection to al-Qaida.
In the last two months al-Qaida promised that it would avenge Iraq and Afghanistan by attacking British and American aviation assets -- I see a direct link with that, he said.
Britain has come under fire from Islamic militants for its military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Blair has also come under strong criticism at home and abroad for following the U.S. lead and refusing to call for an immediate cease-fire in the conflict between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas.
British Airways said no hand baggage would be allowed on any of its planes leaving British airports. It said no electrical or battery powered items would be allowed in the cabin, including laptops and mobile phones.
British Airports Authority said all passengers on flights to the United States would be subject to a secondary search at the boarding gate and all liquids would also be removed.
The Home Office Web Site showed the threat rating had been raised to critical from severe earlier on Thursday. Britain has a five level rating for security threats, ranging from low to critical, which is the highest level.
Terror plot sparks long lines at Newark airport
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 08/10/06
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEWARK U.S. air travelers poured out liquids, opened their bags for inspection and endured long waits this morning as airports heightened security and some flights were canceled or delayed after the discovery of a terror plot aimed at air service from Britain to the United States.
New Jersey's homeland security chief, Richard Canas, said there were no specific threats for Newark Liberty International Airport or anything else in the state, as far as
authorities know.
But travelers at Newark's Terminal B, which handles many international flights, were caught this morning in one of the worst airport screening lines in recent memory.
The line stretched the entire length of the terminal, roughly six football fields, and
was barely moving.
Andra Racibarskas, of Chatham, was trying to get to Michigan to pick up her daughter from camp.
"Checking in was very easy,'' Racibarskas said. "It took one minute curbside. It took
one minute to get my boarding pass. It took 15 minutes to find the end of the line. This line is at least four hours long. As a frequent flyer, I've never seen anything like
this, even after 9-11.''
The government said it was banning liquids including beverages, hair gels and lotions from flights, explaining only that liquids emerged as a risk from the investigation in Britain.
At Newark, screeners and Transportation Security Administration agents walked up and down the line urging passengers to discard anything liquid in their carry-on baggage. Garbage cans rapidly filled with hair gel, shampoo and cologne.
Robert Coppola, of Dover Township, was trying to fly to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., but was unhappy to learn he'd have to get rid of his Cool Water cologne. He said the ban was aggravating, but that he'd rather be safe than smell good.
Canas said he was briefed at 1 a.m. by federal authorities. He said increased airport security regulations, including the ban of most liquids on domestic flights, was likely to continue.
"This will go on until they turn over every rock. We're looking at weeks here,'' Canas
said.
Canas also said NJ Transit increased security on the commuter railroad.
The U.S. government raised its threat warning to the highest level for commercial
flights from Britain to the United States and raised slightly the alert for all flights
coming or going from the U.S.
It is the first time the red alert level in the Homeland Security warning system has
been invoked, although there have been brief periods in the past when the orange level was applied. Homeland Security defines the red alert as designating a "severe risk of terrorist attacks.''
Official: Check before going to airport
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 08/10/06
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
"We advise folks to allow extra time for longer security lines. People should check
with their airlines before heading to the airport,'' said Pasquale DiFulco, spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty International airports.
"We remain on a heightened state of alert,'' DiFulco said. "We've got a heavy police
presence. We're just trying to maintain things as normal as possible.''
Not happy.
