Posted on 09/23/2003 3:54:33 PM PDT by Alouette
An Indian airman displays the portable anti-aircraft Igla IM missile system, February 2003.
Channel 2 TV reported Tuesday evening that Thailand's Police thwarted an al-Qaida plot to attack Israeli passengers inside Bangkok International Airport, and also down an Israeli EL AL passenger plane taking off or landing from the same airport.
Bangkok Police arrested a suspicious man three months ago as he was filming with a video camera near the EL AL counter at Bangkok International Airport.
After questioning the man, Police suspected he was collecting intelligence on EL AL and airport security and passenger routines.
A search of the man's home uncovered detailed plans that pointed to a clear intention to attack EL AL passengers on their way from the plane to the arrivals lounge in the airport and vice versa, from the departures lounge to the plane.
According to the TV, the attack was meant to take place in the very near future, and the man arrested is more than likely an al-Qaida operative.
Furthermore, other detailed plans were found in the house which pointed to plans to attack an El AL plane with shoulder launched anti-aircraft missiles.
Since the arrest, security at the airport has been bolstered and passenger routines have been changed.
EL AL would not comment on the specific report, saying only that it is doing, and would continue doing everything possible to protect its passengers.
Security sources quoted on Channel 2 said that Bangkok is considered "sensitive" to terrorist attacks.
On November 28, 2002, a suspected al-Qaida-related terrorist fired two shoulder-launched SA-7 Strela anti- aircraft missiles at an Arkia jet as it took off from Mombasa, Kenya, narrowly missing the Boeing 757-200, which carried 261 Israeli passengers.
A terrorist called Hambali, believed to be the Asian point man for al-Qaeda and the operations chief of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), a Southeast Asian terror network accused of carrying out last October's Bali bombings, reportedly planned to attack passenger planes at Bangkok International Airport before he was arrested.
During interrogation, Hambali admitted that he was preparing to bomb the (backpacker area) Khao San Road, and the embassies of the United States, Israel and Japan in Thailand, and had already scouted the areas. According to reports He was also planning to use missiles to attack planes at Bangkok International Airport.
Hambali, 39, whose real name is Riduan Isamuddin, was Southeast Asia's most wanted man until he was arrested Aug. 11 in Thailand by Thai police and the CIA. U.S. authorities then flew him to an undisclosed location.
Israel Aircraft Industrie's (IAI) first missile self-protection system for commercial aircraft, 'Flight Guard', was unveiled in June in the hope aviation policy makers will approve it for commercial use and lead to wide sales.
The defense system takes on greater significance as former Soviet republics with stocks of surface-to-air-missiles that have been used by terrorists against commercial aircraft balked at a Russian proposal to tighten control over sales of the shoulder-fired missiles.
'Flight Guard' was adapted from a successful military version that has been on the market for 10 years. The system's radar detects approaching heat-seeking missiles and automatically deploys tiny, powerful flares in all directions from the plane's rear or sides to divert the missiles.
Oh my, this is unacceptable! A clear example of profiling! This man should have the right to shoot video in an airport without the threat of arrest. < /sarc >
And the problem with that is.......?
....a lot of it is child porn.
Your President explained this to the decadent UN ambassadors this morning. I'm not sure they liked it, either.
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