Posted on 12/30/2007 7:32:45 AM PST by blam
No Brussels Fireworks Amid Terror Threat
Published: 12/30/07, 10:05 AM EDT
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Traditional New Year's Eve fireworks in central Brussels have been canceled due to a continuing terror threat in the Belgian capital, officials said Sunday.
The popular downtown Christmas market will close early, at 6 p.m., on Dec. 31 rather than staying open all night, and the adjacent skating rink will shut at 8 p.m.
Authorities warned of an increased risk of attack after police last week detained 14 people suspected of plotting to help an accused al-Qaida militant break out of jail.
The inmate, Nizar Trabelsi, 37, is a Tunisian ex-professional soccer player who is serving 10 years for plotting to drive a car bomb into the cafeteria of a Belgian air force base housing about 100 U.S. military personnel.
However, in a letter published by the daily newspaper La Derniere Heure, Trabelsi denied that his supporters were plotting his jailbreak or any terror attack.
A judge ordered his supporters' release for lack of evidence, and all suspects have maintained their innocence.
Authorities said the city would maintain heightened security measures until at least Jan. 3.
"We've reviewed the situation and the conclusion is that there is no reason to scale back the current level of (terror) alert," said Jaak Raes, director general of the government's Crisis Center. "The aim is not to create panic ... but to avoid unnecessary risks."
The government said last week it had information that the suspects were plotting to use explosives and other weapons to free Trabelsi, who was arrested in Brussels in 2001, two days after the Sept. 11 attacks, and convicted two years later.
Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt warned that the suspects also could have other targets in mind, and ordered police to step up security at the airport, in subway stations and at the Christmas market.
During his trial, Trabelsi admitted plotting to kill U.S. soldiers based in northeastern Belgium, saying he had met al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan and asked to become a suicide bomber.
Trabelsi came to Europe to play professional soccer in 1989. Over the next few years, he bounced from team to team in the minor leagues, acquiring a cocaine habit and a criminal record.
Eventually, he made his way to al-Qaida training camps in Afghanistan, where evidence presented at his trial showed he placed himself on a "list of martyrs" ready to commit suicide attacks.
Soccer, cocaine in Islam. Talk about a guy with nasty habits.
Mysterious throat cutting death in New Jersey should be reciprocated by two mysterious throat cuttings in Hamtramk.
And .. etcetera.
the adjacent skating rink will shut at 8 p.mThere ya go. Can't get more proactive than that.
What could terrorists possibly pull, now that the skating rink is shut down at 8 o'clock?
There was a reason for the crusades. That reason has risen again, like a Phoenix. Time to act.
ping
And, I forgot to add, when Brussels rolls around as capital of the EU again, the EU will have a Muslim capital. Some other city may be first.
“The lights are going out all over Europe...”
When fireworks are outlawed, only outlaws will have fireworks.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.