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Hijack alert issued after arms found in modified equipment: Report
Washington, Aug 04: The discovery at al-Qaeda lairs of equipment modified to conceal small arms was a reason the Bush administration issued last week`s hijack threat warning, reported a news magazine in its latest edition.
Washington, Aug 04: The discovery at al-Qaeda lairs of equipment modified to conceal small arms was a reason the Bush administration issued last week's hijack threat warning, reported a news magazine in its latest edition.
Hand-carried travel equipment, including cameras and portable sound equipment that could be taken without suspicion through US airport checkpoints, was found at terrorist hideouts, federal authorities told the magazine.
The discovery of the equipment hinted at how operatives of the Islamist militant network might go about launching an airline attack, retrieving the items after passing through airport security and using them to commandeer planes. A bulletin from the US Homeland Security Department sent to airlines and leaked to the media said US intelligence had no reason to believe such equipment had yet been deployed.
However, sources told the magazine that terrorists' efforts to manufacture such weapons-smuggling devices was worrying enough to warrant the hijack alert.
A key source for the information al-Qaeda's alleged leader in Saudi Arabia Ali al-Ghamdi -- also known as Abu Bakr -- a suspected brain behind the may bombings in Riyadh who turned himself in to Saudi authorities in June, said the magazine. Authorities were treating the information he gave with some reservations, the news weekly added, although al-Ghamdi's information had been corroborated by other sources, including through electronic intercepts. Bureau Report
The discovery of the equipment hinted at how operatives of the Islamist militant network might go about launching an airline attack, retrieving the items after passing through airport security and using them to commandeer planes. A bulletin from the US Homeland Security Department sent to airlines and leaked to the media said US intelligence had no reason to believe such equipment had yet been deployed.
However, sources told the magazine that terrorists' efforts to manufacture such weapons-smuggling devices was worrying enough to warrant the hijack alert.
A key source for the information al-Qaeda's alleged leader in Saudi Arabia Ali al-Ghamdi -- also known as Abu Bakr -- a suspected brain behind the may bombings in Riyadh who turned himself in to Saudi authorities in June, said the magazine. Authorities were treating the information he gave with some reservations, the news weekly added, although al-Ghamdi's information had been corroborated by other sources, including through electronic intercepts. Bureau Report