Posted on 04/08/2010 9:57:49 AM PDT by Nachum
DENVER (AP) - Qatar's U.S. ambassador rushed to the defense of his envoy whom authorities say grabbed a surreptitious smoke in a jetliner's bathroom, sparking a bomb scare and widespread alert that sent jet fighters scrambling to intercept the Denver-bound flight.
But no explosives were found and authorities speaking on condition of anonymity said they don't think he was trying to hurt anyone during Wednesday's scare and he will not be criminally charged.
Qatar's U.S. ambassador, Ali Bin Fahad Al-Hajri, cautioned against a rush to judgment.
"This diplomat was traveling to Denver on official embassy business on my instructions, and he was certainly not engaged in any threatening activity," he said in a statement on his Washington embassy's Web site. "The facts will reveal that this was a mistake."
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.myway.com ...
Tobacco wasn’t known of when Mohammed dreamt up the Koran, so he neglected to forbid it.
I think the “defense” from the Qatari ambassador was against the claims popping up in the media that this idiot was actually trying to set off a shoe-bomb, not an attempt to claim that it was no big deal that the idiot was 1) illegally smoking in an airplane lavatory, and 2) made a colossally stupid wisecrack when confronted about it.
The idiot is a very, very junior “diplomat”. Or was. It’s safe to say that he succeeded in blowing up his fledgling diplomatic career. He’ll very soon be headed home in disgrace, aboard a Qatar Airways flight.
He could be charged if the Qatar government agreed to waive his diplomatic immunity, if the US government requested that. But why bother? He’d only get a slap on the wrist here anyway. Do you really want your tax dollars paying for this guy to sit around watching TV for a couple of months in a US prison? Qatar will get him out of our country forthwith and hand him over to his daddy, who is presumably some mildly important business or government official, since that’s the only explanation for how such an immature jerk could have landed a plum assignment to the US.
He can't be charged with a crime, but he can be charged.
Send him the bill for scrambling 2 F-16's.
Maybe he will find that 'funny', just like the joke he made about lighting his shoes.
Also BAN him from flights on any domestic airline, due to his violating the rules against smoking on a plane.
Doubtful, but I strongly suspect that "alcohol was involved" in this incident, and that's a whole different ballgame in an Islamic country. Not that the wealthy and powerful don't indulge regularly, but they keep it out of public view. Hopefully we gave Mr. al-Madadi a prompt blood alcohol test, and will divulge the results to the media. Public opinion in Qatar would then force the government to mete out some sort of punishment to the idiot, instead of just dropping off the newly unemployed wayward boy at his daddy's house.
Has Obama apologized to Qatar for the rude treatment of their diplomat yet?
Nicotine’s a hell of a drug.
Won't be necessary. Next flight he gets on will be a Qatar Airways flight, booked for him (one way) by the Qatari Embassy. His diplomatic passport will be yanked as soon as he lands, and the only way he'd get back into the US is by applying for and getting an oridnary visa -- something that won't be happening anytime soon. Qatar values its strong relationship with the US government, and this stupid kid is totally expendable.
If nothing else, it keeps the already over strained system on the edge of high tension. Quoth the Reverend Manning PHd. on this kind of thing elsewhere.
Psychological and economic warfare.
Let’s see how far a ‘mistake’ would get us serfs.
LET US BE VERY CLEAR HERE. YOUR ENVOY, YOUR ENVOY IS GUILTY OF BEING AN IDIOT, CAUSING A BOMB SCARE, SCRAMBLING JETS OF A SOVEREIGN NATION! YOUR ENVOY'S BEHAVIOR CAUSED THIS.
It is your country that should be apologizing for your idiot envoy for his breach of protocol, your government should be paying for the emergency actions our sovereign nation took due to the idiot you call an envoy.
We have nothing to be ashamed of, we did nothing wrong, and we have every right to take actions when the person in front of us is acting like an idiot and talking about bombs.
Next Time around tell the SOB to take greyhound.
The perp caused the problem, the Embassy should pay.
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