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| Britain |
| Al-Qaeda terror plot to bomb Easter shoppers |
| 2009-04-10 |
| An al-Qaeda cell was days away from carrying out an "Easter spectacular" of co-ordinated suicide bomb attacks on shopping centres in Manchester, police believe. Sources told The Daily Telegraph that the arrests of 12 men in the north west of England on Wednesday were linked to a suspected plan to launch a devastating attack this weekend. Some of the suspects were watched by MI5 agents as they filmed themselves outside the Trafford Centre on the edge of Manchester, the Arndale Centre in the city centre, and the nearby St Ann's Square. All but one of the men arrested were Pakistani nationals who came to Britain on student visas. This suggested a possible new tactic by al-Qaeda, which had previously used British-based extremists who travelled to Pakistan for training. The issue of student visas represents a potential security nightmare for the police and MI5. There are 330,000 foreign students in Britain and around 10,000 such visas are issued every year to Pakistanis alone. Phil Woolas, the Immigration Minister, has described the student visa system as "the major loophole in Britain's border controls". Several of the suspects who were being questioned last night, were from the al-Qaeda heartlands in Pakistan's border area with Afghanistan. Peter Fahy, chief constable of Greater Manchester, said police had been forced to act to protect the public. Asked about al-Qaeda involvement, he added: "We know what is the nature of the threat to this country and where it comes from." But he sought to reassure shoppers, and added: "I would like to say I would have no hesitation, or any of my family, in using any of those locations that have been mentioned." The security services suspect that several of the men arrested were trained at religious schools in Pakistan and sent to launch suicide attacks on the West. They were suspected to have chosen Easter as the most significant Christian holiday for an attack. Police believe the suspects may have smuggled bomb-making equipment into the country and were ready to launch their attacks. Yesterday, searches focused on a property in Highgate Street, Liverpool, although nothing "significant" had yet been found. Sources said police had arrested the man they suspected was the ring-leader, Abid Naseer, 22, at an address in Galsworthy Avenue in Cheetham Hill, Manchester. He is said to be from the tribal areas of Pakistan where the Taliban and al-Qaeda have established their base. The alleged members of the cell had signed up for a range of student courses, while two were employed as security guards at a new Homebase store in Clitheroe, Lancs. Among the locations raided on Wednesday afternoon was the Cyber Net Café in Cheetham Hill, where it is thought the men communicated using emails. Security sources suspect they received their instructions from al-Qaeda commanders in Pakistan. The leader of the Pakistan Taliban is Baitullah Mehsud, who last week claimed responsibility for an attack on a police compound in Lahore and promised to attack the West. At least one of the arrested men is from Mehsud's heartland of South Waziristan, sources in Pakistan said. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #4 "We are not at war with Islam" B Obama |
| Posted by: Airandee 2009-04-10 15:36 |
| #3 The Overseas Contingency Operation Against Man Caused Disasters marches on... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-04-10 10:07 |
| #2 These men were not terrorist, they were Man Made Disaster Facilitators. |
| Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC 2009-04-10 10:02 |
| #1 Enough is enough!US and UK should cut ties with the Pakis until they abandon their jihadi ideology. Deport the families of any british pakis caught involved in terrorism/spreading hatred about the west!!!! |
| Posted by: Paul2 2009-04-10 06:53 |