Pakistan Link In British Terror Plot
'Key Person' In Case Held In Pakistan; Pregnant Woman Among Suspects
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Play CBS Video Video Terror Suspects' Neighborhood Only On The Web: CBS News' Sheila MacVicar describes the diverse London neighborhood of five terror suspects and the arrest of the young men that caught friends and family by surprise.
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Video Two Mothers Involved In Plot? Only On The Web: Sheila MacVicar reports on the investigation into what is being called the 'liquid bomb' plot. Purportedly, one female suspect was pregnant and another had a 6-month-old baby.
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Video 'Liquid Bomb' Plot Details New details have emerged in "the liquid bomb plot." Security sources say the terrorists wanted to detonate the bombs in-air directly over U.S. cities, maximizing the damage. Sheila MacVicar reports.
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A British police officer looks around as a man gestures at members of the media outside a mosque in northeast London, near where a number of homes were raided by police, Aug. 11, 2006. (AP)
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A Pakistani man reads a newspaper with the headline story of Britain terror plot, at a newspaper stall in Karachi, Pakistan, on Aug. 11, 2006. (AP)
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British police officers stand outside a property at Albert Road, in the Walthamstow area of northeast London, which was raided by police, Aug. 11, 2006. (AP)
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An unidentified worker at Dulles Airport near Washington carries a plastic bin containing various toiletries and drinks surrendered by passengers on Aug. 11, 2006. (AP)
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An unidentified passenger holds his head as he waits in a long line snaking over the bridge from the main terminal to the A concourse of Denver International Airport on Aug. 10, 2006. (AP)
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Interactive Trans-Atlantic Terror Plot Scheme to blow up U.S.-bound aircraft is foiled in U.K.; aviation security ratcheted up.
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News Tools Carry-On Or Check? Many items are banned from carry-on luggage in the wake of the foiled transatlantic terror plot.
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Special Report War On Terror Complete coverage of the military's battle against terrorism.
The Metropolitan Police said late Friday that one of the 24 people was released without being charged.
Police did not identify the person who was released, nor did they say if the person remained a suspect. Twenty-two of the other had their detentions extended through to Wednesday. The final person's detention hearing was delayed until Monday, but the suspect remained in custody.
Travelers in Britain and the U.S. saw shorter lines at airports as flight schedules slowly returned to normal.
British police have arrested a total of 24 people suspected of involvement in the plot. CBS News correspondent Sheila MacVicar reports they are all British-born and most are middle class and of Pakistani descent. The youngest is 17. One is a pregnant woman and another is a woman with a six-month old child.
The Bank of England said it had frozen the accounts of 19 of the suspects and, in a very unusual move, posted their names on its Web site.
Pakistani officials said they had arrested five Pakistanis and two Britons in the case, including British national Rashid Rauf, who was arrested about a week ago and described as a "key person" with ties to al Qaeda.
"We arrested him from the (Afghanistan-Pakistan) border area, and on his disclosure we shared the information with British authorities, which led to further arrests in Britain," Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao said. The five Pakistanis were described as suspected "facilitators" of the plot.
Later, a Pakistani intelligence official said 10 Pakistanis had been arrested Friday in the eastern district of Bhawalpur, 300 miles southwest of Islamabad, in connection with the alleged plot. A second intelligence official confirmed there had been arrests but didn't know how many. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because of their sensitive positions.
Also Friday, police in Italy arrested 40 people in a security crackdown after the thwarting of the British airline plot, the Interior Ministry said, without elaborating.
Investigators said the attackers planned to use common electronic devices to detonate liquid explosives to bring down as many as 10 U.S.-bound jumbo jets. Security sources the would-be terrorists discussed blowing their bombs in midair over American cities, maximizing casualties in the air and on the ground, reports MacVicar.
A federal law enforcement official in Washington said that at least one martyrdom tape was found during raids across England on Thursday. Such a tape, as well as the scheme to strike a range of targets at roughly the same time, is a hallmark of al Qaeda.
"There's a lot to suggest to us this is an al Qaeda attack," Frances Townsend, President Bush's homeland security adviser, said on CBS' The Early Show. "We just need a little more time to put together those links."
British Home Secretary John Reid said Britain was grateful for Pakistan's cooperation and that officials believed the main suspects were in custody. However, the threat level in the U.K. remained at "critical," the highest level.
Agents in Pakistan arrested at least seven people, including two British nationals of Pakistani origin who provided information on the terror plot, a senior government official said Friday. The arrests were made in the eastern city of Lahore and in Karachi, the official said on condition of anonymity because he did not have the authority to speak formally on the issue.
Two were Britons arrested about a week ago, he said. The five Pakistanis were arrested on suspicion that they served as local "facilitators" for the two Britons, the official said. It wasn't clear when they'd been detained.
The Guardian newspaper, citing unidentified British government sources, said after the first two arrests were made in Pakistan, a message was sent to Britain telling the plotters: "Do your attacks now." That message was intercepted and decoded earlier this week, The Guardian said.
A U.S. congressman briefed by intelligence officials, who did not want to be identified because of the sensitivity of the investigation, said U.S. intelligence had intercepted terrorist chatter.
Authorities pressed ahead Friday with efforts to smash the purported terror ring. Two U.S. officials said British, U.S. and Pakistani investigators were trying to trace the steps of the suspects in Pakistan and determine whether some of them attended terrorist training camps there.
Police would not say where the suspects were being held — which is not unusual in highly sensitive cases — but terrorist suspects are usually brought to the high-security Paddington Green police station, in central London.
British law permits terrorist suspects to be interrogated for up to 28 days without being charged, although after the first 48 hours court permission is required for further detention.
Meanwhile, airline passengers in Britain and the U.S. faced a second day of disruptions and disappointment as airports struggled to restore flight schedules.
"It is going to be another difficult day today, both for airports and for passengers, but there is cause for optimism that we will get more flights off today," said Stephen Nelson, chief executive of British Airports Authority, which runs Britain's major airports.
©MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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See all 53 CommentsSo, the typical Pakistani is not al Qaeda, by any means. Some Pakistanis resent Musharaf for seizing power in a military coup, which made him a military dictator by most definitions. But most active plots against Musharaf of late have come from al Qaeda.
well my mistake to imply all of any group - obviously not all of any group are "bad"
you talk as though pakistan has been this all supporting group of people who have done nothing but help in this effort (which I will agree they have been helpful in some ways) but it doesn't put a side the fact that bin laden is believed to be hold up and supported by their people either..
Clearly, you have trouble with the concept that the Pakistanis are *major* allies in combating al Qaeda. They are doing much more than you-- at risk to their own lives-- to "reign in" (sic) the people who threaten us.
Were it not for the Pakistanis you condemn, our so-called "war on terror" would not have gotten to first-base. Try putting a squad of recon Marines in downtown Lahore, and see how far they get interrogating the natives for intel about bin Laden.
Many of the UK plotters in the subway bombings and now in the airliner plot had parents who were completely ignorant of, and not in sympathy with their activity. Some parents, in fact, helped authorities with what they did know of particular people associated with the plots. Some came forward on their own, at great risk to themselves. You could not ask for better neighbors than that.
Cultural assimilation is still understood as the ultimate objective of immigration. But all over the world, even in the US, with the wave of illegal (and legal) hispanic immigrants, it is clear the first impulse of newcomers is to isolate themselves in a homogeneous community-- ie. a self-made "ghetto". The Polish, Italian, Irish, etc. immigrants did it on their arrival, as did the early Chinese. The Germans simply moved past and created towns in the interior. This tactic was often to soften the culture shock, as you can imagine you might want if you moved to Pakistan, or even as close as Mexico (where you would be required to speak Spanish as part of your citizenship). For greater understanding, try to put yourself in their place.
It is a great mistake to associate ethnic background or recent immigrant status with the actions of a violent few. Every group has a spectrum of people, some exemplary citizens and some not. Native-born Timothy McVeigh (Oklahoma City bombing) reminds us native birth does not always mean immunity to violent tendencies. Our general rate of violent crime with handguns is the worst in the world.
Granted, the so-called Islamic jihad is making an earnest effort to recruit among naturalized and second-generation US citizens. The same effort continues around the world. But for every Islamic convert to jihad, there are many times more people of MidEast descent who have no sympathy with jihad violence and simply want to live in peace with their communities, practice their professions and raise their kids. In fact, you can thank many of them that you can sleep in relative peace, because they risk their lives to make sure their violent brothers do not carry their plots very far.
You need to understand how much of an ally Pakistan has been, post-911. Without Pakistani intel and assistance in the Pakistani border provinces and al Qaeda activity there, the activity with air strikes and drone monitors would be severely curtailed. Pakistani army units have pursued and engaged al Qaeda units directly, and the border provinces are often as much a wild "frontier" to them as to US and Afghan forces, literally next door.
After 911, had Pres. Musharaf not given a green light to Bush to attack the Taliban in Afghanistan, we might have had to force an access route and had a war with two countries, not one. Pakistanis also have been generally supportive in other anti-terror activities, and their assistance continues a major asset.
Many people blame President Bush,but i think he has done alot to make sure these guys are crushed.Infact i am willing to join any armed force aimed at killing all the fanatics starting with Bin Laden
Many people blame President Bush,but i think he has done alot to make sure these guys are crushed.Infact i am willing to join any armed force aimed at killing all the fanatics starting with Bin Laden
Many people blame President Bush,but i think he has done alot to make sure these guys are crushed.Infact i am willing to join any armed force aimed at killing all the fanatics starting with Bin Laden
Many people blame President Bush,but i think he has done alot to make sure these guys are crushed.Infact i am willing to join any armed force aimed at killing all the fanatics starting with Bin Laden
Many people blame President Bush,but i think he has done alot to make sure these guys are crushed.Infact i am willing to join any armed force aimed at killing all the fanatics starting with Bin Laden
Many people blame President Bush,but i think he has done alot to make sure these guys are crushed.Infact i am willing to join any armed force aimed at killing all the fanatics starting with Bin Laden
Posted by singinrick at 02:55 PM : Aug 10, 2006
singinrick, i you have the same idea that muslim fanatics have...if the world would only embrace what you believe it would be better...you are truly deluded
1. All law enforcement learn Arabic.
2. Mix in some multicultural neighborhoods within those pure Arabic neighborhoods. Try to become friends with the Arabic people. If you try to be friends and they pull away, that's a warning sign.
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See all 53 Comments