A 23-year-old Al Qaeda operative, Abdul Mudallad, man boarded an airplane from Nigeria, which made a stop in Amsterdam, en route to Detroit, Michigan in America, with the components for a bomb on his person. He tried to ignite the bomb components he assembled on the plane and it misfired, seriously injuring him and two other passengers.
He was given an introductory lesson to American football, when he was roughly tackled to the ground by other passengers. There's nothing like a group of disgruntled passengers flying on Christmas day when they would rather be in their homes. Dude had it coming for this act of terrorism.
When the plane landed, the terrorist was detained and questioned. He is now looking at life in prison, like shoe bomber, Richard Reid.
Apparently someone didn't read the Judiciary Report's anti-terrorism Christmas Eve message last night, on the ills of suicide bombings. The article was about the deaths of 30 Al Qaeda members in Yemen and putting a stop to suicide bombings by terrorist groups.
This recent incident has the appearance of a retaliatory attack for the deaths of the 30 Al Qaeda members in Yemen, a region Mudallad told authorities he has a tie to, when he was detained today.
Thank God there was a happy ending to this story, which could have been a terrible tragedy. Well done to the passengers that taught the terrorist how to play football the hard way.
However, some serious questions need to asked, as to how a man, who is on the U.S. terrorist Watch List, did not end up on the No Fly List. Clearly something in his behavior landed him on the Watch List. Therefore, what happened at the FBI and Homeland Security, that resulted in a dangerous person in their sights, to be once again overlooked regarding the threat they pose.
Midair Bomb Attempt Fails
Man on Flight to Detroit Claims Al Qaeda Ties; Obama Tightens Security
DECEMBER 25, 2009, 7:40 P.M. ET - DETROIT -- A passenger on a Detroit-bound Northwest Airlines flight tried to detonate an explosive device that was strapped to his leg and later told investigators that he was trying to blow up the plane and had affiliations with al Qaeda, according to a senior U.S. official.
The man, who has not been publicly identified by officials, told investigators that he was given the device by Al Qaeda operatives in Yemen, where he was also given instructions on how to detonate it, the official said. The Associated Press reported that Rep. Peter King (R., N.Y.) has identified the man as a Nigerian named Abdul Mudallad.
"This guy claims he is tied to al Qaeda, specifically in Yemen," the official said. "He claims he was on orders from al Qaeda in Yemen. Who knows if that's true." ...
In addition to calling pilots on the intercom, airlines and security experts for years have debated the concept of providing cabin crews with additional ways to warn pilots about potential threats from passengers, Video cameras, wireless alerting devices or some type of discreet alarm switch have all been discussed.
So far, the Federal Aviation Administration and many airlines have been resisting such mandates, arguing that they would be expensive and unnecessary.
http://online.wsj.com
U.S. Says Explosion on Plane Was Terrorism Attempt
Published: December 25, 2009 - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities believe an incident involving a small explosion aboard a Delta-Northwest Airlines flight to Detroit on Friday was an attempted act of terrorism, a White House official said...
Representative Peter King, who sits on the House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee, said the explosive device was "fairly sophisticated," and the suspect was a 23-year-old Nigerian.
"When it did go off, he himself was seriously injured. He has third degree burns. ... It appears to be different from what we've encountered before," King told Fox News.
http://www.nytimes.com
