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US Says It Halted Al-Qaeda Radioactive Bomb Plot
Washington (AFP) June 10, 2002 Investigators thwarted a plot to detonate a radiation-laced dirty bomb in the United States by arresting a US "terrorist" linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, Attorney General John Ashcroft said Monday. "I am pleased to announce today a significant step forward in the war on terrorism," said Ashcroft in a television address live from Moscow. "We have captured a known terrorist who was exploring a plan to build and explode a radiological dispersion device, or 'dirty bomb' in the United States." Ashcroft said Abdullah al-Muhajir, 31, a US citizen born in New York as Jose Padilla, who was allegedly plotting the attack, was arrested at Chicago's O'Hare international airport on May 8, after flying in from Pakistan. "We know from multiple, independent and corroborating sources that Abdullah al-Muhajir was closely associated with al-Qaeda and that as an al-Qaeda operative he was involved in planning future terrorist attacks on innocent American civilians in the United States." A radioactive or dirty bomb is a conventional explosive device containing radioactive material toxic to humans, that can be fatal to people in the vicinity of the blast. It is also seen as an effective weapon for disseminating panic. Top law enforcement and military officials said they foiled the plan before a target was selected. "It was still in the initial planning stages, it certainly wasn't at the point of having specific targets," said Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, who appeared at a press conference with Federal Bureau of Investigation chief Robert Mueller. Al-Muhajir did however have some knowledge of the Washington area, Wolfowitz said, adding that he had researched nuclear weapons and received training in wiring explosives while in Pakistan. "He was instructed to return to the United States to conduct reconnaissance operations for al-Qaeda." President George W. Bush said al-Muhajir was a "threat to the country," during a joint press availability with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. "Thanks to the vigilance of our intelligence-gathering and law enforcement he is now off the streets, where he should be." FBI officers handed Al-Muhajir into the custody of the Defense Department in South Carolina, after designating him an "enemy combatant." That categorisation permits officials more latitude in questioning al-Mujahir. Ashcroft said al-Muhajir made several visits to Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2001 and met senior officials from bin Laden's al-Qaeda network -- chief suspect in the September 11 terror attacks on New York and the Pentagon. "Al Qaeda officials knew that as a US citizen holding a valid US passport, al-Muhajir would be able to travel freely in the United States without drawing attention to himself," said Ashcroft. Al-Muhajir was intercepted by federal agents working on information provided from captured al-Qaeda leader Abu Zabaydah, US television networks quoted sources as saying. Al-Muhajir joins two other Americans and hundreds of foreigners detained by the Pentagon in a legal no-man's land under designation as an "enemy combatant" -- a categorisation that permits officials more latitude in questioning al-Mujahir. "Enemy combatants do not adhere to the laws of war, do not wear uniform, do not wear legitimate insignias, do not carry weapons openly and are not from recognized nations, governments," said Rivers Johnson, a Pentagon spokesman. That term, or "illegal combatant," has been used by US authorities to describe prisoners held at a US Navy base in Guantanamo, Cuba, where 409 fighters from the US-led war on Afghanistan are being held. And the announcement of his arrest comes at a time of increasing criticism of the FBI and Central Intelligence Agency, for perceived lapses which prevented them halting the September 11 terror attacks. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Al-Muhajir's arrest was a sign of good synergy between different law enforcement agencies. "This is a case of a government whose actions worked and worked well," he said. Al-Muhajir had several run-ins with US authorities in his younger days. In Florida in the early 1990s, he was placed on a year's probation for aggravated assault and firing a weapon, according to the Florida Department of Corrections, but "satisfactorily" completed his probation in August 1993. It was in Florida where he reportedly converted to Islam sometime in the mid 1990s. He apparently dropped out of view after leaving the country in 1998. Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express Kashmiri Borders Suddenly Calm After Weeks Of Heavy Artillery Duels Jammu (AFP) June 10, 2002 Kashmiri borders became suddenly calm overnight after weeks of heavy exchanges of artillery and mortar fire between Indian and Pakistani soldiers, police said Monday. |
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