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| Terror Networks |
| Al-Qaeda plans to disrupt maritime trade |
| 2004-08-05 |
| Intelligence shows al Qaeda has plans to blow up shipping in a bid to disrupt world trade, Britain's top Naval officer has said in an interview. The Royal Navy's First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Sir Alan West, said that Western governments had intelligence that terrorists view shipping as an attractive target and have plans to destroy ships. "We have got an underlying level of intelligence which shows there is a threat," West told Lloyd's List maritime newspaper. West warned that terrorism could potentially cripple global trade and have grave knock-on effects on developed economies. "What we've noticed is that al Qaeda and other organizations have an awareness about maritime trade," he said. "They've realized how important it is for world trade in general and they understand that significance." Lloyd's list commented that the terrorist threat to merchant shipping is nothing new for the maritime industry --illustrated in 2002 by the attack on the French tanker Limburg off the coast of Yemen. But such a stark warning from such a senior figure in the British military establishment was likely to add further impetus to global efforts to increase security awareness at sea, Lloyds List said. "We've seen other plans from intelligence of attacks on merchant shipping," West said. "I can't give you detail on any of that, clearly, but we are aware that they have plans and they've looked at this." |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #3 Once the election is over & Bush heads into his 2nd term, Iran, the center of global terrorism (at least the Shi'ite branch) can be broght to the front burner of rouge states which must be removed. In doing so, Syria & Lebanon both of which recieve 'assistance' from Iran's vast oil wealth, will be on their own and easy to deal with. In terms of terrorism on the high seas, once again our own security methods must be improved world-wide on every ship heading into or heading out from U.S. waters. |
| Posted by: Mark Espinola 2004-08-05 6:31:34 PM |
| #2 What the article does not mention is how some pirates have already taken over a ship only to then pilot it for several hours as "practice." Lucky, the threat is not so much from within the ships but without. Pirate activity in the region has been soaring in recent years, as with terrorist activity. This is the central issue, not infiltration of the boat crews themselves. This is a serious threat and most definitely needs to be addressed. Indonesia and Malaysia had better come up with some strong solutions instead of their incessant dithering about terrorism. Both countries have expressed official resentment at American suggestions for a US response force being put in place. It is estimated that 50,000 ships carrying 30% of world trade and 80% of Japan's oil transit this critical passage every year. Any obstruction of it would disrupt the entire Asian economy. A first step would be to harden all ship's pilot houses. Armed escorts probably are required as well. A "deadman's switch" sort of broadcast system would be useful as well. Akin to the "everything's all right" signal transmitted to nuclear submarines during patrols, each ship should have a special transmitter that must be code keyed by biometric interlocked data at periodic intervals while a vessel is underway. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-08-05 3:32:22 PM |
| #1 Stock the galleys with bacon for breakfast, pork sausages for lunch, and pork chops for supper. No beards, no prayer mats. That should keep the crew jihad free. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2004-08-05 11:31:46 AM |