Great Britain: Rocket jet plot is foiled (Nice work by England's Finest)

The Sun (U.K.) ^ | November 30, 2005 | Richard White

[Stoat]

Rocket jet plot is foiled

Leader ... Sir Ian Blair
 

By RICHARD WHITEA SUSPECTED terrorist plot to stage a Christmas murder blitz in Britain was smashed yesterday by police and MI5.

A 28-year-old Asian man was snared as he allegedly tried to buy a rocket launcher near the M25 South Mimms services.

It is feared he planned to blast a holiday flight at a major UK airport.

The British-born Muslim was kept under surveillance for weeks by Met chief Sir Ian Blair’s anti-terror cops and MI5 agents.

He was lured to a road near the service station in Hertfordshire, where it is believed he intended to buy the rocket launcher and a cache of other weapons.

The suspect, believed to have been in contact with al-Qaeda sympathisers, was ordered to hit the ground by Scotland Yard’s elite CO19 firearms unit.

Police marksmen trained their weapons on him as he was told to spread his arms.

No shots were fired as he was arrested by anti-terrorist branch officers.

It is thought he was carrying thousands of pounds in cash.

In a coordinated operation, anti-terror detectives then swooped on two addresses in Waltham Forest and Newham, East London.

The suspect was being questioned last night at London’s high security Paddington Green police station.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “A man was arrested in a joint operation in connection with an inquiry into the suspected attempted procurement of weapons linked to terrorism.”

[Stoat]

Fine work by Great Britain's police

Metropolitan Police Service - Homepage

They work very hard to keep everyone safe......many hundreds of lives may have been saved in this one action alone.  If you would like to send them a hearty American THANK YOU!! here is the Contact page where you can send them a friendly email....I'm sure that they would appreciate it.

Metropolitan Police Service - Crime Prevention Advertising and Marketing Campaigns 2004

[PLMerite]

If the Brits had only called it the "Winter Holiday" instead of "Christmas" it might not have offended the Moose Limbs so much! /s

[martin_fierro]

The suspect was being questioned last night at London’s high security Paddington Green police station.

Sucks to be him.

[vimto]

From UK - thanks for the post and the kind words. Thank God the plan was foiled. How much good our (and your) security services do often goes unnoticed (sometimes it has to for security reasons).

Strange but true, Ian Blair is under fierce attack here and has gone public saying that he might have to resign - over the inquiry into the shooting of the Brazilian chap on the tube. Heck it was a tragedy - an my heart goes out to his family - but in war (and this is) these things happen. Learn the lesson, dust yourself down and get on with it.

After the 7/7 here the spotlight is on our police! It makes you want to weep.... When all is said and done there is much more support for USA here than you would believe from the media - the chattering classes make all the headlines. Warm regards,

[wideminded]

After the 7/7 here the spotlight is on our police!

Being in the UK, perhaps you have heard the answer to this question: Has any link been found between the 7/7 and 7/21 bombers?

[wildcatf4f3]

I'm glad to hear it! and that a tragedy, or rather an atrocity, was avoided.

[vimto]

Has any link been found between the 7/7 and 7/21 bombers?

As I understand it the short answer is 'no'. The thinking is of independent cells that are unaware of each other. I have heard conflicting stories about the fingerprint of the explosives used in each attack. Clearly in the background.... strings are being pulled but mapping that is very difficult.

On this point - recently the Ian Blair and the Met asked parliament to let them detain terror suspects for up to 3 months with weekly judicial reviews. The reason given was that the evidence and connections are so well hidden especially on the Internet and other electronic communications. Tony Blair supported it - put it to the Commons where it was defeated (28 days agreed).

[Stoat]

If the Brits had only called it the "Winter Holiday" instead of "Christmas" it might not have offended the Moose Limbs so much! /s

Yes, well, speaking for myself of course, I would prefer to retain my religion and culture and if it offends them to the point where they want to try to kill me over it, they are welcome to try  :-)

[Stoat]

The suspect was being questioned last night at London’s high security Paddington Green police station.

Sucks to be him.

Yes, his school guidance counselor apparently didn't mention career options to him other than WORTHLESS TERRORIST SCUMBAG, and right now he's experiencing one of the less pleasant aspects of the job  :-)

My great hope is that our British Friends are not encumbered by the pantywaisted,  pro-criminal prisoner-handling laws that our Law Enforcement pros are saddled with here in the USA.  Although it would be impossible to cause him to experience the sort of horrific terror, pain and misery that his intended victims would have suffered, justice would be served by at least making an effort in that direction......

The suspect was being questioned last night at London’s high security Paddington Green police station.

Sucks to be him.

[Canard]

Good news, although I'll wait for charges to be pressed before celebrating too much. There have been plenty of occasions when arrests such have these have been made, loudly trumpeted in the media and then, a couple of weeks later, everyone has been released with rather less fanfare.

[BigCinBigD]

"It is thought he was carrying thousands of pounds in cash.'
Yikes! How big was this guy?

[Caipirabob]

He's in for it now...

[Stoat]

From UK - thanks for the post and the kind words.

You're quite welcome, but I feel that it's very easy to express sentiments of solidarity and gratitude toward one of the very few nations that has, at great personal risk, taken the initiative to stand alongside us in this war on terror.  During these dark and difficult times we are finding out who our true friends are, and none are truer than our British Friends.  One day we will be able to look back upon the trials that we have experienced together and our great successes....a Middle East transformed into a functional, sane region and millions of people freed from Islamofascist tyranny.....and know that we can do anything at all when we stand together, because we stand for what is good and right.  Generations of the future will look back and marvel at the great accomplishments of these times, which would not have been possible for the United States to do alone.

Thank God the plan was foiled. How much good our (and your) security services do often goes unnoticed (sometimes it has to for security reasons).

Yes, I am also very thankful that a degree of secrecy exists, despite our active Left who masquerade as 'media watchdogs' but in reality do their utmost to work for our defeat in this war.  Fortunately, the adults are still in charge of the police services   :-)

Strange but true, Ian Blair is under fierce attack here and has gone public saying that he might have to resign - over the inquiry into the shooting of the Brazilian chap on the tube. Heck it was a tragedy - an my heart goes out to his family - but in war (and this is) these things happen. Learn the lesson, dust yourself down and get on with it.

It's a shame that he is experiencing so much pressure over this incident....it's completely wrong and unjustified for him to be under fire.  Some extremely basic and obvious rules were broken by the man who was killed.  Among them:

When you have Middle-Eastern appearing features or could be thought of as having such features, you don't

1.  Wear heavy and bulky overcoats on a warm day with wires hanging out of the pockets

2.  Fail to stop when law enforcement officers order you to.

3.  Run into a popular terror target when you've been ordered to stop.

Of course there could have been misunderstandings and it was certainly a tragedy, but my great hope is that the police will not be cowed into inaction as a result of this.  He could have just as easily been a terrorist, and the safety of the public is paramount.  My hope is that Ian Blair will be able to overcome these difficulties and press on with the job at hand.

After the 7/7 here the spotlight is on our police! It makes you want to weep....

You have my sympathies.  Things are very bad in that regard here, with our police having their hands tied and prevented from doing their jobs in so many ways.  The criminals truly have the upper hand and it's a very difficult fight to maintain order.  The police have my respect for being able to go to work every day and face this sort of thing.

 When all is said and done there is much more support for USA here than you would believe from the media - the chattering classes make all the headlines.

That's wonderful to hear!  Thank GOD for the internet, and the free flow of information that it provides without the filter of the Leftist-dominated media.

Warm regards,

And to you as well   :-)

[Stoat]

Good news, although I'll wait for charges to be pressed before celebrating too much. There have been plenty of occasions when arrests such have these have been made, loudly trumpeted in the media and then, a couple of weeks later, everyone has been released with rather less fanfare.

Sadly, all too true, but if such a thing were to happen in a case where a terrorist act was sure to be committed, then my great hope is that the British people will rise up and make rapid, sweeping changes in their government.  Such a profound insult should not be allowed to stand.

[Stoat]

"It is thought he was carrying thousands of pounds in cash.'
Yikes! How big was this guy?
 

ROTFLMAO!!

[Canard]

"Some extremely basic and obvious rules were broken by the man who was killed. Among them: When you have Middle-Eastern appearing features or could be thought of as having such features, you don't 1. Wear heavy and bulky overcoats on a warm day with wires hanging out of the pockets 2. Fail to stop when law enforcement officers order you to. 3. Run into a popular terror target when you've been ordered to stop."

My own views on Ian Blair are somewhat less charitable than vimto's and here you have inadvertantly highlighted the reason why his position is currently in some doubt.

The facts of the case are that Jean Charles De Menezes was not wearing a bulky overcoat on the day in question, he was wearing a denim jacket, similar in fact to what I was wearing on the same day. There were no wires hanging out of his jacket. He was not ordered to stop by police officers outside the station and did not 'run into a popular terrorist target', he entered the station normally, used his pass to proceed through the ticket barriers, made his way onto a train and took a seat.

It is the very fact that it was Ian Blair who put most of these incorrect 'facts' into the public domain, at a time when his officers working on the case already knew them to be wrong, and then failed to correct the misleading story for some days afterwards that he is being criticised for.

[Stoat]

That's very interesting and the first that I've heard of the points that you mention.

I hope that the truth will ultimately reign supreme, and if Mr. Blair must step down that his replacement be VERY tough on terror....our British Friends deserve no less.

[Canard]

Hmm, think I should clarify a little, rereading my previous post it sounds more definite than it probably should. In a lot of cases, the misleading information came from eyewitness statements - eg. the bulky coat, wires hanging out. Ian Blair did not to my recollection directly say that that was what the man was wearing, but did say in a press conference that the man's clothing 'added to suspicions', or something along those lines. He did say that a warning had been given outside the station (he qualifyed this with 'as far as I'm aware'). As I said, he then did not correct these 'facts' as they continued to be reported for the next few days (in the interests of fairness should point out that his reply to this charge is that he was told by the Police Complaints Commission to make no further comment on the case).

There is going to be a seperate inquiry into his conduct around the case, which was announced a couple of days ago, you can see details here:

http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/news/pr281105_stockwell

[RegulatorCountry]

"I have heard conflicting stories about the fingerprint of the explosives used in each attack."

From the info I've been able to gather from reports within the US, the explosive used was triacetone triperoxide (TATP), known to radical Islamists as "Mother of Satan." I've only seen one conflicting report that said it was actually a somewhat similar compound, hexamethylene diamine triperoxide (HMDT). Both are "cooked" from materials that are fairly easily purchased at retail.

[airborne]

Gee, I hope he wasn't treated too badly!

Hopefully, the Brits gave him a nice cup of tea and a civil chat about his noble intentions.(if you don't see this as sarcasm, all I can say is "wow!")