US, allies tighten air cargo scrutiny
Source: Agencies |
November 2, 2010, Tuesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE United States and allied governments tightened their scrutiny of air cargo and shipped packages yesterday as investigators tried to trace bomb parts and scanned for more mail bombs possibly sent from Yemen.
An official United Arab Emirates security source said authorities are tracing the serial numbers of a mobile phone circuit board and computer printer used in a mail bomb sent from Yemen and found in Dubai last week.
Authorities believe Yemeni-based terrorists sent two mail bombs addressed to Jewish synagogues in Chicago last week, but the devices may have been aimed at blowing up planes in flight. While officials caught two bombs in the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom, US officials warn there may be more in the system.
The UAE security official said yesterday the emirates are sharing the bomb part serial numbers with the US, Yemen and other countries involved in the probe in an effort to track the bombs' origins.
Meanwhile, US counterterrorism officials warned local law enforcement and emergency personnel to be on the watch for mail with unusual characteristics that could mean dangerous substances are hidden inside.
The FBI and Homeland Security Department cautioned that foreign-origin packages without return addresses and excessive postage require a second look, according to an advisory sent to local officials around the country.
Major cargo firms have already suspended shipments from Yemen and yesterday, Germany's aviation authority said the country has extended its ban on cargo aircraft from Yemen to include passenger flights amid the current terrorist threat.
One of the bombs that was mailed from Yemen and found by authorities was routed to London through the UPS hub in Cologne.
The mail bomb plot was narrowly averted, officials said. One device almost slipped through Britain and the other seized in Dubai was unwittingly flown on two passenger jets.
Yemeni authorities hunted suspects linked to AQAP, but released a female computer engineering student arrested last Saturday, saying someone else had posed as her in signing the shipping documents.
An official United Arab Emirates security source said authorities are tracing the serial numbers of a mobile phone circuit board and computer printer used in a mail bomb sent from Yemen and found in Dubai last week.
Authorities believe Yemeni-based terrorists sent two mail bombs addressed to Jewish synagogues in Chicago last week, but the devices may have been aimed at blowing up planes in flight. While officials caught two bombs in the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom, US officials warn there may be more in the system.
The UAE security official said yesterday the emirates are sharing the bomb part serial numbers with the US, Yemen and other countries involved in the probe in an effort to track the bombs' origins.
Meanwhile, US counterterrorism officials warned local law enforcement and emergency personnel to be on the watch for mail with unusual characteristics that could mean dangerous substances are hidden inside.
The FBI and Homeland Security Department cautioned that foreign-origin packages without return addresses and excessive postage require a second look, according to an advisory sent to local officials around the country.
Major cargo firms have already suspended shipments from Yemen and yesterday, Germany's aviation authority said the country has extended its ban on cargo aircraft from Yemen to include passenger flights amid the current terrorist threat.
One of the bombs that was mailed from Yemen and found by authorities was routed to London through the UPS hub in Cologne.
The mail bomb plot was narrowly averted, officials said. One device almost slipped through Britain and the other seized in Dubai was unwittingly flown on two passenger jets.
Yemeni authorities hunted suspects linked to AQAP, but released a female computer engineering student arrested last Saturday, saying someone else had posed as her in signing the shipping documents.
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