Al-Qaeda to turn on Britain

2003-08-24 10:28

London - The FBI has uncovered intelligence that the al-Qaeda terrorist network is plotting to hijack an aircraft in Britain over the next two months and fly it into an important building, a London-based newspaper said on Sunday.

British Airways and other leading airlines have been put on alert after the warning was passed to Britain's security services, according to the report in The Sunday Telegraph.

The report said that the most likely targets for the hijackers were aircraft taking off from London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

The FBI and the US department for homeland security circulated a warning to British and US airlines on July 30, saying that terrorists working in teams of five were likely to try to hijack aircraft using "common items carried by travellers", such as cameras, to disguise weapons, the newspaper said.

"Recent reporting on al-Qaeda from intelligence sources indicated that terrorists might try to to modify electronic items for use as weapons in order to circumvent improved security screening," the warning said, according to The Sunday Telegraph.

US officials said the intelligence was collected during a raid on an overseas al-Qaeda residence in recent months, according to the same source.

An FBI spokesman, quoted by the newspaper, said that information about possible attacks had also identified Italy, Australia and the United States as ground targets.

"At least one of these attacks could be executed by the end of the summer. Recognising changes in aviation security measures since 11 September, 2001, al-Qaeda is looking for new ways to circumvent enhancements in aviation security screening and tightening immigration requirements," the spokesman was quoted as saying.

The al-Qaeda terror network was responsible for the September 11 attacks on US targets in 2001 which used commercial airliners to crash into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon building.

- AFP