Month: August 2006

— The U.S. raised the terror threat level to “severe” for all flights leaving Britain for the United States. Britain raised its alert level to “critical.”

— Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney ordered the National Guard to Boston’s Logan Airport, and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered the National Guard to airports in his state.

— Besides banning liquids, British police are also banning passengers from carrying electronic key fobs, which have the potential to trigger bombs.

— A U.S. administration official said the plot targeted Continental, United, British Airways and American Airlines flights to New York, Washington and California.

— As many as 10 flights were targeted, and the plot may have involved up to 50 people, U.S. officials told CNN.

— U.S. and British officials said some suspects could still be on the loose and their investigations were continuing.

— Indications are that at least 21 of those arrested are British citizens and some were of Pakistani ethnicity, a senior U.S. intelligence official said.

— In a sign of the heightened security, Chertoff said the U.S. was dispatching extra air marshals to Britain.

— Chertoff said it was unclear if all suspects were in custody. The plotters were “getting close to the execution phase.” He added, “There were very concrete steps under way to execute all elements of the plan”.

Via CNN

Gatorade and an iPod. Who would have thought those two items and others like them could be used to take down an airplane?

Terrorists planned to use MP3 players and energy drinks to blow up as many as 10 jetliners bound for the United States, authorities said Thursday.

A senior congressional source said it’s believed the plotters planned to mix a “British version of Gatorade” with a gel-like substance to make an explosive that they would possibly trigger with an MP3 player or cell phone.

Will we now finally wake up and understand the lengths at which these fanatics will go to kill innocent people?

UPDATE: ABC News says terrorists planned to use energy drinks and the flash mechanism from disposable cameras to ignite the explosives. 

British officials warn that an attack could still be underway as they continue their search for more suspects.

Scotland Yard officials do not believe they have captured all the members involved in today’s terror plot out of Heathrow Airport and are urgently searching for more suspects.

Authorities are concerned that those still at large may well have instructions to act now if the plot was disrupted, and they have not ruled out other cities and airports as possible targets of attacks. ABC News has been told that this is a well organized, “for real”  plot, not an informant’s suggestion.

The Blotter continues to provide excellent coverage of the developing story.

21 24 people have been arrested in the U.K. after an investigation uncovered a major terror plot targeted at U.S. bound aircraft leaving London’s Heathrow airport. According to reports, the plan was to detonate explosive devices smuggled in hand luggage on to as many as 10 aircraft.

The 24 suspects appeared to be of Pakistani descent with strong links to al Qaeda and Pakistani operatives.

Airports worldwide are on high alert. In the U.S., a ‘red alert’ – the highest alert level – was issued. Intense security measures are in effect. In London, carry-on baggage of almost all kinds has been eliminated.

U.S. Homeland Security personnel stated that the terrorists appeared to have planned to use multiple persons aboard each flight to assemble peroxide-based liquid or gel high explosives. The materials could easily be hidden in water bottles, tooth paste tubes, juice boxes or any number of other type of small containers that passengers regularly carry onto flights. 

At least nine transcontinental flights from American, United and Continental airlines were targeted in the plot. ABC News has learned that terrorists planned to attack the planes three at a time, waiting an hour between each attack.

According to federal authorities, two or three bombers would each carry a separate portion of the bomb onto the plane to avoid detection.  Once onboard the bomb would be assembled and then detonated by using heat or friction.

British authorities had been tracking some of the suspects for several weeks but stepped in to round up the plotters when they began to book flight reservations.

The TSA has banned all liquid carry-ons on U.S. flights.

As you can imagine, the wait to get through security at most U.S. airports is growing. At my airport, Seattle Tacoma International, the time in line is now 82 minutes.

— UK Airports swamped

UPDATE: The alleged plot ringleaders have been identified.

Live TV Coverage: ABC NewsNow | BBC | CNN International | 

Bloggers: Brenden Loy has a massive round up. Michelle Malkin too. Hot Air has been covering the news since it broke, as has Pajamas Media. As usual, the Counterterrorism Blog is all over this.

Other MSM news links (courtesy of Drudge): Plan to blow up 6-10 planes in mid-flight over ocean | ‘Mass murder’ bomb plot | May have been ‘the Big One’ | ‘Suggestive’ of al-Qaida | UK police hold 21 | REPORT: Citizens of Pakistani Descent | Britain on highest alert | USA raises air security alert to red for first time |
Statement by Homeland Security | Text: Chertoff’s Statement | FLASHBACK MONDAY: London-to-Boston flight returns to Heathrow because of security issue | Britain facing ‘most sustained threat since WWII’ | Bush Statement | How the terrorists were caught |

Rob of Say Anything takes apart the numbers of a CNN poll and concludes that although 60% of Americans oppose the war in Iraq, 91% support keeping the troops there. Strange? You bet.

It seems to me that opposing a war is an either/or proposition. What kind of a person opposes a war and then turns around and says that they support keeping our troops in harm’s way fighting a war they don’t approve of?

I think these muddled results are an indication of just how thoroughly mislead on Iraq many people are. I think most people support the concept of the mission in Iraq (as evidenced by the fact that 91% of the people responding to this poll want to keep troops there) yet because they are fed a daily diet of negativity and outright hostility toward the President and his foreign policies by the press many of them can’t help but feel that something must be wrong or going wrong with the war. Thus the 60% opposition to the war in general.

Rob’s right on the money with his perception of how Americans can both oppose the war yet desire to keep our troops in Iraq to win the mission.

What’s really frustrating with polls (in general) is like this one, few are provided with any serious data, like the sampling, the questions asked, etc. Not that the MSM cares much about the real data, so long as they can pull out a sensationalized headline.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gets his spot on CBS’ 60 Minutes this Sunday. 88 year-old Mike Wallace does the interviewing, but that remains to be seen. I think he’s playing the part of ‘useful idiot’ to Ahmadinejad, who desperately needs main stream media to propagate his doublespeak. Here’s a sample:

On what the “conducive conditions” would be for Iran to establish relations with the U.S., the president said, “Well, please look at the makeup of the American administration, the behavior of the American administration. See how they talk down to my nation. And this recent resolution passed about the nuclear issue, look at the wording. They have given us — presented us with a package which we are studying right now. We even gave them a date for our response. Ignoring that, they passed a resolution. They want to build an empire. And they don’t want to live side-by-side in peace with other nations. The American government, sir, it is very clear to me they have to change their behavior and everything will be resolved. (George W. Bush) believes that his power emanates from his nuclear warhead arsenals. The time of the bomb is in the past, it’s behind us. Today is the era of thoughts, dialogue and cultural exchanges.”

Gee, does it sound like Mahmoud is speaking to the Cindy Sheehan’s, the Ned Lamont’s, the Arianna Huffington’s and all their moonbat followers? It sure does.

While Ahmadinejad mouths sweet words to Mike Wallace, he pulls the strings of terrorists worldwide. Don’t be fooled. 

Hot Air has all you need to know about the elections last night in Connecticut and Georgia. If you want a good belly laugh, check out Cynthia McKinney’s concession speech. It’s a hoot. Oh, and then there is the singing thing, which is just plain wrong.

Red shoes and white socks…nice.

(h/t A Socialite’s Life)

If we’ve learned anything since 9/11, it’s this; when 11 Egyptian students granted entrance into the U.S. for educational purposes suddenly disappear in New York, worry about it.

Eleven Egyptian students who were supposed to travel to a Montana university after flying to JFK airport late last month disappeared in New York, spurring federal authorities to issue a nationwide alert, officials said yesterday.

The students – who were traveling with six classmates from Mansoura University in Egypt – had their student visas revoked for failing to show up at Montana State University in Bozeman, the officials said.

“At this point, all they have done is not show up for a scheduled academic program, and their visas have been revoked,” Kolko said.

“We do not know of any association with any terrorist or criminal groups. There is no threat associated with these men. We have simply asked law enforcement’s assistance in locating them so that the FBI and ICE may interview them.”

Rep. Peter King (R-L.I.), who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, said the situation “has to be taken very seriously.”

“Having a number of students from an Arab country arriving on student visas and disappearing is cause for concern,” he said.

Here’s a question; how can Liberals search for these guys, six of which have ‘Mohammed’ somewhere in their name, without racial profiling?

The party girl and sometimes actress Lindsay Lohan wants to go to Iraq with Hillary and entertain the troops just like Marilyn Monroe did in Korea.