Ex-Terrorist Takes CBN News Inside Al Qaeda

Western leaders are often at odds over how to take on the threat of Islamic terrorism. Al Qaeda, on the other hand, appears totally focused on its mission.

The terrorist group is obsessed with destroying the United States. And according to one former colleague of Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, they don&’t care how many innocent civilians are killed in the process.

Face-to-Face with Bin Laden

CBN News recently spoke with former terrorist Noman Benotman in an extensive interview about the inner workings of Al-Qaeda's leadership.

These days, Benotman lives a quiet life in London with his wife and children. But it wasn't long ago that Benotman stood face-to-face with Osama bin Laden.

“He insists on inflicting pain to his enemies,” Benotman said of bin Laden. “Beyond your imagination. You can't miss it when you talk with him.”

via Ex-Terrorist Takes CBN News Inside Al Qaeda – World – CBN News – Christian News 24-7 – CBN.com.

U.K. Fighter Jets Scrambled, Woman Rushes AA Flight Cockpit

Fox News reports two Royal Air Force (RAF) Typhoon jets were scrambled to assist an American Airlines passenger plane shortly before it landed at London’s Heathrow airport on Tuesday after a woman attempted to gain access to the flight deck.

The woman, who has yet to be identified, was arrested by London police after the pilot on flight AA078 bound from Dallas-Fort Worth requested urgent assistance.

The plane landed safely at approximately 10:50 a.m. GMT and the arrest was made soon after, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said.

Police said the woman did not pose a terror threat to the Boeing 767-300, which had 161 passengers and 12 crew on board.

via Read Full Article.

Anthrax Contaminated Heroin Continues To Spread

British authorities today warned drug users that heroin in London was highly likely to be contaminated with anthrax, after a first confirmed case there and following nine deaths in Scotland.

“While public health investigations are ongoing, it must be assumed that all heroin in London carries the risk of anthrax contamination,” said Dr. Brian McCloskey, who is director of the Health Protection Agency (HPA) in London.

“Heroin users are advised to cease taking heroin by any route, if at all possible, and to seek help from their local drug treatment services.”

McCloskey added that the risk to the general population was “negligible.”

Anthrax has been found in 19 heroin users in Scotland since

via Anthrax contaminated heroin spreads | News.com.au.

Britain – Terrorists Plan Attack With Bombs Inside Their Bodies

From Mail Online – Security services believe the move has been prompted by the recent introduction at airports of body scanners, which are designed to catch terrorists before they board flights.

It is understood MI5 became aware of the threat after observing increasingly vocal internet ‘chatter’ on Arab websites this year.

The warning comes in the wake of the failed attempt by London-educated Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to blow up an airliner approaching Detroit on Christmas Day.

One security source said: ‘If the terrorists are talking about this, we need to be ready and do all we can to counter the threat.’

A leading source added that male bombers would have the explosive secreted near their appendix or in their buttocks, while females would have the material placed inside their breasts in the same way as figure-enhancing implants.

Experts said the explosive PETN (Pentaerythritol Tetranitrate) would be placed in a plastic sachet inside the bomber’s body before the wound was stitched up like a normal operation incision and allowed to heal.

via Terrorists ‘plan attack on Britain with bombs INSIDE their bodies’ to foil new airport scanners | Mail Online.

What Prompted UK To Raise Terror Alert

What prompted the UK to raise it’s terror alert status to severe over the weekend? It appears it may have been more than just a single, isolated threat.

First, the UK’s Times Online reports that it was raised by authorities fearing that Islamist terrorists planned to hijack an Indian passenger jet and crash it into a British city.

Indian hijack plot caused new UK terror alert

MI5 was told by the Indian authorities early last week about a suspected plot by militants linked to Al-Qaeda in Pakistan to hijack an Air India or Indian Airlines flight from Mumbai or Delhi.The warning, which came after the capture of a suspected Islamic leader, was contained in a detailed “threat assessment” sent to MI5 by the Indian Intelligence Bureau.

It did not state that Britain was a specific target. But police security sources said it had raised fears in London that a British city might be attacked.

via Indian hijack plot caused new UK terror alert – Source.

However; The Independent reports:

Yemen Meeting Caused Switch To Severe Terror Alert

The terror threat to the UK was raised to “severe” after intelligence suggested this week’s London conferences on Yemen and Afghanistan could be used by al-Qa’ida as an opportunity to strike at the West, Whitehall sources said yesterday.

The Home Secretary, Alan Johnson, announced that Britain is on its second-highest alert level – meaning an attack is considered “highly likely” – on Friday evening amid concerns in London and Washington that al-Qa’ida is planning a renewed push against US and UK interests.

Other, anonymous, sources keen for levels of public awareness, or anxiety, to be raised gave different accounts. The Sunday Telegraph said that a group of female terrorists, who may have a “non-Arab” appearance, had been trained to attack western targets. The Sunday Times reported MI5 fears that Islamic terrorists planned to hijack an Indian airliner and crash it into a British city.

Source

And as if those those were not sufficient reasons, there is also a threat of women suicide bombers, as reported in the Sunday Telegraph.

Al-Qaeda has trained female suicide bombers to attack West, US officials warn

Al-Qaeda terror cells have trained a group of female suicide bombers to attack Western targets, US officials have warned.

The women, who may have a “non Arab” appearance and be travelling on Western passports, have been prepared for their missions by the Yemeni group responsible for the operation to blow up an airliner over the United States on Christmas Day.

Details of the bombers emerged just hours after British spy chiefs raised the UK threat state to “severe” amid fears that al-Qaeda was planning a wave of attacks against western targets.

Source

Terminal at Manchester Airport Closes, Suspicious White Powder

UK- A portion of a terminal at England’s Manchester Airport has been closed according to the BBC and a chemical alert was declared after security staff found white powder in a piece of luggage.

The departure area of Terminal 3 was closed after a man tried to carry the unidentified powder on to an aircraft.

The man was planning to fly from Manchester to London.

The man has not been arrested, but is helping with inquiries, said police. A police source said the incident was not believed to be terror-related.

Tests are being conducted on the powder.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/8476864.stm.

Two Held With Fake Papers At Airport, One Flees

India In a story we’ll be keeping an eye on The Times of India reports that hours before Indian intelligence agencies put all flights operating from India on a high alert against possible hijack attempts, two Sri Lankan nationals one flying to New York and the other to London were arrested by immigration officials at the Kochi airport on Thursday for carrying forged Indian passports and travel documents.

The two Sri Lankan nationals were being assisted by two employees of a private multinational ground-handling company. One of the employees fled the scene when the passengers were caught according to the report.

via Source.

Jihadists Groom Children In The UK Under 10

If you want to eliminate terrorism, you must eradicate the terrorists, their safe havens and their ability to indoctrinate future generations. There will never be enough safeguards or security measures in place to stop terrorism. For every method or process we create to prevent their attacks, they will come up with another to surprise us. This is a prime example.

Police have identified children as young as seven being groomed for terrorism, with some expressing a wish to become suicide bombers.

Up to 10 primary school pupils, aged between seven and 10, have been placed on a government outreach program for individuals considered at risk of being radicalised and turning to violence.

Some have taken inspiration from jihadi websites or after viewing extremist material in Islamic bookshops.

One child was referred to the program by his teacher after writing on a school book: “I want to be a suicide bomber.”

Related Links

* Plane bomb suspect 'joined al-Qaeda in London'

* How Britain's mosques foster extremism

Other youngsters were identified by their parents after suddenly adopting traditional Muslim dress or espousing extremist views.

At least 228 people, mostly teenagers and young men aged 15-24, have been referred to the anti-terrorism Channel project after being singled out as “potentially vulnerable to violent extremism”.

“For people to be identified there have to be distinct changes in behaviour and warning signs,” said Craig Denholm, deputy chief constable of Surrey police who oversees the programme. “We assess each one on its own merits. There is a very small number of children aged seven, eight and nine.”

via Jihadists groom children in the UK under 10 – Times Online.

25 British-born Muslims Plotting to Bomb Western Airliners

According to a report in The Sun UK, police there fear that up to 25 British-born Muslims are plotting to bomb Western airliners. The report states that the radicals, in five groups, are now training at secret terror camps in Yemen.

It was there London-educated Umar Abdulmutallab, 23, prepared for his Christmas Day bid to blow up a US jet.

The British extremists in Yemen are in their early 20s and from Bradford, Luton and Leytonstone, East London.

They are due to return to the UK early in 2010 and will then await internet instructions from al-Qaeda on when to strike.

A Scotland Yard source said: “The great fear is Abdulmutallab is the first of many ready to attack planes and kill tens of thousands.

“We know there are four or five radicalised British Muslim cells in the Yemen.

“They are due back within months when they will be under constant surveillance.”

The 25 suspects, of Pakistani and Somali descent, were radicalised in UK mosques.

Some had been to university and studied engineering or computer sciences.

Others were former street gang members.

Special Branch monitored them as they flew to Yemen, in the Middle East, from British airports in the spring and summer.

In almost every case, their tickets were paid for in cash and bought less than a week before travel.

Read Full Article

London Warned of Mumbai Style Terror Attack

Increased intelligence chatter picked up by authorities has led Scotland Yard to warn London businesses a Mumbai style terror attack on the capital may be in the planning stages. This according to a report in The TimesOnline. In the report, a senior detective from SO15, the Metropolitan police counter-terrorism command, said: “Mumbai is coming to London.”

The detective said companies should anticipate a shooting and hostage-taking raid “involving a small number of gunmen with handguns and improvised explosive devices”.

The warning,the bluntest issued by police, has underlined an assessment that a terrorist cell may be preparing an attack on London early next year.

It was issued by the Met through its network of “security forums”, which provide business leaders, local government and the emergency services with counter-terrorism advice.

During a “commando-style” raid by 10 gunmen on hotels and cafes in Mumbai in November 2008, 174 people were killed and more than 300 injured over three days.

Officials now report an increase in “intelligence chatter” communications captured by electronic eavesdropping agencies. One senior security adviser said the police warnings had intensified and become much more specific in the past fortnight.

“Before, there has been speculation. Now we are getting what appears to be a definite plot to carry out a firearms attack on London,” he said.

via London Warned of Mumbai Style Terror Attack By Scotland Yard.

Beat Officers Prevent Terror Attack Stopping Suspicious Tourist

London – Further evidence that behavioral profiling does work. A terrorist attack on London was averted because two beat patrol officers stopped a man who was acting suspiciously while filming with a mobile phone, police claimed yesterday.The Algerian man said that he was a tourist, but when his phone was examined it yielded 90 minutes of footage of stations, security cameras and shopping centers.

Police took the unprecedented step of releasing the “hostile reconnaissance” video to counter criticism that they are using anti-terrorism powers to question tourists and photographers. “I’d much rather justify what we did do in stopping someone than having to justify why we didn’t do it against the backdrop of a burning building and a terrorist atrocity,” Detective Superintendent Chris Greany, of City of London Police, said.

He admitted that his officers did “get it wrong sometimes” but said that they were acting in the public interest in stopping people. He added: “We don’t just stop people for a laugh we’re trying to make London safer.

via Read Full Article.

Four Face Terror Charges In UK

British police have charged four men with terrorism offenses following raids last week in Manchester and near London’s Heathrow airport, an officer says.

Israr Malik, 21, was charged with intending to commit acts of terrorism, namely violent jihad, between June 2008 and November 17 this year, the officer said.

Matthew Newton, 27, Munir Farooqi, 52, and Haris Farooqi, 26, are charged with intending to assist others to commit acts of terrorism, namely violent jihad, between October 2008 and November 17 this year.

“Four men have been charged after an operation by the North West Counter Terrorism Unit that took place on November 16,” the officer said.

Five men were arrested in the pre-dawn raids, which police then described as a “low key” operation, and officers were given seven days to question the men.

The arrests, including one man seized in a hotel near Heathrow, follow a 15-month investigation and were linked to an alleged overseas threat, reports said.

Read Full Article

Terrorists Smuggle Fatwas Out of Secure Prisons – UK

According to the Times UK, some of Britain’s most dangerous Al-Qaeda leaders are promoting jihad from inside high-security prisons by smuggling out propaganda for the internet and finding recruits. In an authoritative report, Quilliam, a think tank funded by the Home Office, claims “mismanagement” by the Prison Service is helping Al Qaeda gain recruits and risks “strengthening jihadist movements”.

Abu Qatada, described by MI5 as “Osama Bin Laden’s right-hand man in Europe”, has published fatwas, religious rulings, on the internet from Long Lartin prison, in Worcestershire, calling for holy war and the murder of moderate Muslims, it reveals. Abu Doha, said to be Al-Qaeda’s main recruiter in Europe, has taken courses in Belmarsh prison, south London, enabling him to mentor other inmates.

via Read Full Article.

Police Probe London Train Station Fluid Scare

A bag containing cleaning fluid sparked a scare after it was left at a train station in south-west London, British Transport Police (BTP) said. A man fled after leaving the bag under a bench at Kingston train station at 1650 BST. A substance was then seen leaking across the station forecourt.

It burnt a hole in the shoe of a passer-by, police added.

Trains did not stop at the station while fire crews were called to investigate.

A BTP spokeswoman said: “British Transport Police is currently investigating a suspicious package at Kingston rail station.

“A bag containing a black liquid, later identified as what appears to be a type of cleaning fluid, was found in the booking hall.”

Passengers were not evacuated from the station, she added.

Source

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