Posted on 06/09/2004 9:01:40 PM PDT by Ooh-Ah
An alleged Egyptian bomb expert arrested in Milan this week was feared to be planning an attack on the Paris metro in the next three days, modelled on the one in which 191 people died in Madrid on March 11.
According to one Italian media report last night, police seized him to avert a massacre before Sunday's European elections. The Madrid bombings took place three days before Spain's general election.
A French interior ministry source said last night that Paris had been informed of the allegations, but played down the claim. "Searches carried out [in France] on the basis of information relayed by the investigators have not allowed a potential attack target to be identified," a French police source told the Reuters news agency.
Police in Milan arrested a man Italian officials now identify as Hamed Sayed Osman Rabei on Monday. The 33-year-old man, also known as Mohammed the Egyptian, is suspected of playing a leading role in the Madrid train bombings and is wanted by the Spanish judicial authorities.
On Tuesday, Belgian police, acting on information from Italy, arrested 15 people they said were preparing an attack. An anti-terrorist prosecutor in Belgium said the attack was planned for a foreign country.
The Italian warrant issued for Mr Rabei's arrest shows that much of the evidence against him was gathered from telephone conversations intercepted by Italy's anti-terrorist branch, the Digos.
A Milan anti-terrorist prosecutor was reported yesterday to have provided the US authorities with transcripts of some of Mr Rabei's calls. Mr Rabei was said in the warrant to have spoken to an associate in Belgium and to have asked for information about "the city", which the investigators believe is Paris. He also allegedly inquired about the underground system, checks and inspections.
At one point, the associate in Belgium, identified only as "Mounrad", was quoted as saying "everything is in place". The two men also discussed a third person, referred to as Mohammed, who was already in Paris and was said to be "ready for martyrdom".
Other telephone references were said to show that the suspected terrorists were preparing a rehearsal of the attack using mobile telephones, as in the March 11 Madrid attack.
They planned to use a programme downloaded from the internet that would allow the mobile phones to be activated simultaneously by an SMS text message. Mobile phones work underground in several of the largest Paris metro stations.
In the Spanish bomb attacks, mobile phones were used as detonator timers. But they were activated by the phones' alarm mechanisms, and one was accidentally set to the wrong time. When it did go off, it failed to detonate the bomb to which it was attached, providing investigators with a clue that led, ultimately, to Mr Rabei's arrest.
The SMS system outlined in the Italian arrest warrant would allegedly have got around that key weakness in the Madrid bombers' plot.
France has experienced a bombing campaign on its metro and suburban RER train network - a terror campaign by the Algerian Armed Islamic Group aimed at taking vengeance on the country for its support of the regime in Algiers. The bombing of a packed commuter train at the Saint-Michel station in Paris in July 1995 killed eight people and injured 100. Nine other attacks injured more than 100 others and terrorised the French capital that summer.
The 27-page Italian arrest warrant also includes an extract from a transcribed conversation in which Mr Rabei allegedly boasted of knowing a method that allowed him to change his fingerprints.
"They are never the same. Not even the American intelligence services will find me. So, you will see that today I have some fingerprints and tomorrow others," he is allegedly quoted as saying.
Mr Rabei was arrested with a second man, Yahia Payumi, 21, as they were apparently preparing to leave for Belgium. Mr Payumi has said he is a Palestinian, but investigators believe he may be Egyptian.
Both men are to be questioned by a judge in Milan today. They are accused of criminal association aimed at promoting terrorism.
I thought the terrorists weren't supposed to want to attack France. Seeing as they've already surrendered to the terrorists and all.
Then again, Neville Chamberlain's appeasement didn't really keep Britain all that safe.
I've kinda been waiting to see the Eiffel Tower land on Jacques house, just a hunch, call it a premonition.
Aint that the pits! The Frenchies crawl on their bellies in front of the terrorists, and still Al-Qaeda wants to kill 'em. Look for a Madrid repeat, too (they won't be expecting it).
Hey Chirac, better stand up this time cuz we are not going to land at Normandy again, got it?
Super Glue?
The terrorists must be stupid; France has shown nothing but whole-hearted support for them.
read later
but zee SUVs are de real threat monsouire not ze terrorists. We must get rid of zee SUVs.
Don't mess with the Digos.
And even though I'd hate it, I'm sure the good ol' US taxpayer would be sending aid over there to dig out old Fancy Pantsy Chirac from under the rubble.
Hey Chirac, better stand up this time cuz we are not going to land at Normandy again, got it?
I agree ... let whoever wants em have em.
I figure they already have surrender documents typed up :To Whom It May Concern
So much for that appeasment stance; huh frogs?
Hmmmmm.... I wonder how they "coaxed" this information from their suspect. I wonder if perhaps they were smart enough NOT to take pictures?
Gonna be a summer on the knees for me!
This is not good. It may be time to start some racial profiling on the New York subways. (Hey the NY Times said this was OK so why not?) Anyone of middle eastern ethnicity who is carrying a package or a suitcase has to stop and allow a search of the package or suitcase. If you don't like it, then take a cab.
Send him some money to buy a pair of rollerblades. He can get around town pretty fast on those things and stay in shape at the same time. Tell him to take a cab for longer trips. Better to arrive a little late than never.
"Super Glue?"
Nah, too civilized for this savage.
Probably chewed his fingertips off.
The terrorists don't need support, they want defenseless victims. But with France's surrender, I am sure France is happy to supply that too.
Now I know why so many NYC cabbies are Muslims! You should add
...and if there are no cabs, run!
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