Passengers Help Foil Attempted Terror Plot (Muslim terrorist lived in Houston on visa in 2008)

CBS News ^ | 12/26/09 | CBS News

[jimbo123]

An attempted terrorist attack on a Christmas Day flight began with a pop and a puff of smoke - sending passengers scrambling to subdue a Nigerian man who claimed to be acting on orders from al Qaeda to blow up the airliner, officials and travelers said.

-snip-

Mutallab has been in the U.S. before, having received a visa in June 2008. His listed residence was in Houston, Texas. Authorities had placed him on a preliminary watch list, meaning they wanted to gather more information about him, but law enforcement subsequently lost track of him.

[jimbo123]

More:

But some officials are concerned the suspect might have been directed by others, pointing to the fact that he was seated near the bulkhead of the plane - a location where an explosion would do significant damage.

[jwparkerjr]

re: began with a pop and a puff of smoke

So had the device worked as planned the result would have been a successful Christmas Day terror attack on US soil? Hopefully we’ll learn something from this. It was too close for comfort not to be a source of some good info about how they are thinking these days.

[stephenjohnbanker]

“Authorities had placed him on a preliminary watch list, meaning they wanted to gather more information about him, but law enforcement subsequently lost track of him.”

Good job. Of course, he shouldn’t be here, anyway.

[mewzilla]

I still can't get past the fact that Barry wasn't told for 3 hours.

What in HADES was he doing?!

[driftdiver]

He was surfing and then relaxing at his $4,000 a night mansion.

[jimbo123]

If the attack had been successful, Hussein Obama and his minions would have covered up the true cause of the downing of the aircraft. It would have been an “unfortunate accident” and nothing more. Just like TWA 800 and Air France 447.

[Eye of Unk]

The fearful leader was probably on the beach, praying to Mecca or golfing.

I’m placing my bet he was praying at the golf course.

[narses]

Firecracker? I don't think so! Terrorist Attempt Update: Bomb Was Incendiary, Comprised of Mixed Liquids; Obama Only Notified Three Hours After Incident

More:

A Nigerian man, claiming to be linked to al-Qaeda, allegedly tried to set off an incendiary device aboard a transatlantic airplane Friday as it descended toward Detroit's airport in what the White House called an attempted act of terrorism.

The man was quickly subdued after another passenger leapt on top of him, others on the plane said, and Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam landed safely around 1 p.m. Friday. The suspect was being treated at a hospital for burns he suffered while igniting the device...

The suspect[,] Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab[,] 23, attends University College London, where he studies engineering.

Although not on the TSA's "no-fly" list, Abdulmutallab's name appears to be included in the government's records of terrorism suspects, according to a preliminary review, authorities said.

Abdulmutallab has told federal investigators that he had ties to al-Qaeda and traveled to Yemen to collect the incendiary device and instructions on how to use it, according to a federal counterterrorism official briefed on the case. Authorities have yet to verify the claim, and they expect to conduct several more interviews before they determine whether he is credible, the official said.

Federal authorities have been told that Abdulmutallab allegedly had taped some material to his leg, then used a syringe to mix chemicals with the powder while on the airplane, one official said.

But doing so "caused him to catch on fire," Richelle Keepman, who sat a few rows in front of Abdulmutallab, told WDIV-TV.

...

Officials described the device as incendiary rather than explosive, pending tests by forensics experts at the FBI. Incendiary devices generally deliver less of an impact than explosive devices.

[mewzilla]

I could believe that :(

But I really want to know just what in perdition he was doing for those three hours and where he was doing it.

[kittymyrib]

The word “Muslim” has not been uttered on CNN’s coverage, and Fox News is in holiday mode, so their coverage of this attempted attack on the nation is abysmal.
The pathetic male anchor at CNN is perplexed as to why the terrorist waited until the plane’s descent to light up. He doesn’t understand the terrorists want to make a dramatic statement, and that if the plane blew up over the Atlantic, our lying government would explain it away by saying it was another fuel tank explosion.

[mewzilla]

FWIW, I'm thinking he was up to something a little less public.

Something his aides didn't dare interrupt.

What the HECK was it?!

[Walkingfeather]

I imagine it was some kind of magnesium device designed to burn through the entire bulk head.

[eyeamok]

why would they even bother to notify Obama? like he doesn’t know what his Muslim Brothers are up to.

[PapaBear3625]

I think the reported “firecracker” was actually the blasting cap/primer for the main charge. He screwed up and instead of setting it off, it only caused it to catch fire. C4, for example, will burn fiercely when ignited.

[niteowl77]

“Authorities had placed him on a preliminary watch list, meaning they wanted to gather more information about him, but law enforcement subsequently lost track of him.”

They never seem to lose track of people who step onto the lawn while picketing an abortion clinic or people who cut a shotgun barrel down to 17 and 63/64 inches.

Mr. niteowl77

[stevie_d_64]

Just frappin’ great...

[raybbr]

Hopefully we’ll learn something from this. It was too close for comfort not to be a source of some good info about how they are thinking these days.

My guess is we'll "learn" that it is still offensive to profile muslims.

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

This could have been a real disaster, on Christmas day!
The choice of days shown how deeply the cult of death hates the Western world.
When do the mass deportations begin?

[fishtank]

Reggie love?