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| Terror Networks | ||||
| AQAP printer cartridge bomb round-up from the Western press | ||||
| 2010-11-01 | ||||
In typical Wall Street Journal style, they have a useful slideshow (photos of the device, AQAP bomb-maker Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri of Saudi Arabia, young moving black objects (MBOs) protesting the arrest of classmate Miss Hanan al-Samawi, age 22, an engineering student at Sana'a University, and Yemeni soldiers patrolling the streets) and an interactive graphic of what was found where... and the previous stops. This may have been a rehearsal rather than an actual attack. (10/31) WSJ:Packages May Have Been Sent by Militants Linked to Language Schools Same interactive graphic as above article. The two Yemeni arrestees are Miss Hanan al-Samawi and her mother. The father is Mohammed Al-Samawi, an engineer at the Ministry of Agriculture and Water. Miss al-Samawi's telephone number and a photocopy of her photo i.d. card were submitted with the packages to the shipper. Her lawyer, a specialist in human rights, said that a person who would send such things wouldn't leave his own phone number and i.d.. Authorities (experts?) say the design of the bomb is quite sophisticated, possibly the work of AQAP chief bomb-maker Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri, who made the bomb that so maimed that poor Pantibomber last Christmas. The powerful explosive, PETN, is very hard to detect, even with X-ray machines or sniffer dogs. The toner cartridges contain 4-6 times as much explosive as the Pantibomber's underpants had done. From the article: Investigators believe both of the packages were shipped by individuals with possible links to the Yemen American Institute for Languages-Computer-Management, known as YAI, or the American Center for Training and Development, or ACT, officials said. The names of the school aren't well known in Sana'a, which has an abundance of language and technical training institutes that use the word "American" in their titles. The alleged (10/30) Ay Pee: Al Qaeda Connected to Yemeni Language Institutes The bombs were powerful enough to take down the airplanes carrying them. More suspects beyond Miss Hanan al-Samawi are being sought in Yemen. The bombs were wired to cell phones, timers, and power supplies, but it is not clear that they could have been set off from a distance. There is some question whether it was actually Miss al-Samawi who actually deposited the packages with the shipper. PETN is an industrial explosive. The original tip came from Saudi Arabia. [A]uthorities believed the plotters may have been associated with two institutions called "Yemen American Institute (for) Languages-Computer-Management" or the "American Center for Training and Development." It was not immediately clear whether those institutions even exist or whether that information came from false documents or fake addresses. 10/30 [UK] Daily Mail: Bomb discovered on jet in UK following MI6 tip-off In Britain they are referred to as "printer bombs" because the toner cartridges were actually in computer printers, not free-standing. Photos of the complete devices at the link for your perusal. Several accomplices are being searched for in Yemen, accused of using forged documents and ID cards and having links to AQAP. Prime Minister Cameron believes the devices were designed for a Lockarbie-type mid-air explosion. A Home Secretary Theresa May said the device was not a dummy after all. Direct flights from Yemen were suspended in January after the excitements caused by the Pantibomber, now indirect shipments from Yemen to/through Britain should be suspended. Yemeni authorities are currently searching for 24 other packages. PETN is pentaerythritol trinitrate, previously used by the Pantibomber and also in 2001 by Richard Reid, the shoebomber. A mere 100g of PETN can destroy a car. Police in Dubai said the device there contained an electric circuit linked to a mobile phone chip as well as the compound lead azide, which can be used in detonators. Dubai Police said: 'The parcel was prepared in a professional manner where a closed electrical circuit was connected to a mobile phone SIM card hidden inside the printer.' (10/31) [UK] Express: SECONDS FROM LOCKERBIE II
The alert was triggered by intelligence from a unit of GCHQ surveillance experts stationed in Afghanistan, the Sunday Express can reveal. Operating from a converted shipping container in Helmand, the team picked up the words "A wedding gift is being delivered". The phrase is an Al Qaeda code meaning a bomb is in transit. With the help of Saudi agents, GCHQ alerted MI6, which raised the alarm in London and Washington. SAS troops have now been sent to the Haraz Mountains surrounding San'a to hunt the terrorists responsible for sending the devices. They are being backed by a small team of MI6 agents.
(20/31) MSNBC: Female suspect was set up Hanan al Samawi is either a 5th year computer science major or a computer engineering student. Her father is an oil engineer. Her friends and neighbors say that, although pious, she was not active in politics or religion. Investigators in the UAE say there is no connection to the UPS plane that crashed in September, which showed no evidence of an explosion. PETN was also used by the suicide bomber who failed in his attempt to kill a top Saudi counter-terrorism official last year.
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| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #2 26, eh? That's a lot of booms. It will be interesting to see what the final count is. Congratulations to all for a great job of detection and protection. Yemen needs to be cut off from the free world. Lots of other places in the ME need to go on that list. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2010-11-01 10:29 |
| #1 Thanks TW -- a good round-up |
| Posted by: Sherry 2010-11-01 10:11 |