French police identify suspect in Paris-Miami flight as a Sri Lankan national

AP ^ | 12-23-01 | PAMELA SAMPSON

[Oldeconomybuyer]

PARIS (AP) -- French police said Sunday the man who boarded a jetliner with possible explosives hidden in his shoes was a Sri Lankan national traveling on a British passport.

American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami was forced to make an emergency landing in Boston on Saturday after the passenger, identified by French police as Tariq Raja, tried to ignite what authorities called an improvised explosive in his sneakers.

[a_witness]

Tariq Raja Tariq is an Arabic name.

[TheOtherOne]

"We don't want to put dogs all over the airport. They are living beings, not machines, and they can't work 24 hours a day," the expert said on condition of anonymity. Dogs are best used to inspect individual passengers who arouse suspicions, he said

I suggested we use bomb sniffing pigs. They are good with scents, and I somehow think it may be an extra deterrent.

[mountaineer]

we're trying to determine whether it was falsified

The fake name might be a clue, Clousseau.

[freedom_from_socialism]

From CIA World Factbook:

Religions: Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999)

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Sri Lankan, Yemen, Aghani, Pali....it doesn't matter where they live or their Nationality. it is the agenda they are following. Terrorists are terrorsits no matter how you dress them or what language they speak or their origin/residence. I can't wait for the leftists to come out and sympathize with the ones based on the Country they are from. Oh wait...

[randog]

"We don't want to put dogs security guards all over the airport. They are living beings, not machines, and they can't work 24 hours a day," the expert said on condition of anonymity.

[a_witness]

Tariq is the name of a star, or the name of a famous Moslem general who attacked Spain.

[relee]

He seems might tall for an average Sri Lankan.

[EggsAckley]

And yesterday he was called "not middle-eastern."

[ChicagoRepublican]

Maybe he is connected to the Tamil Terrorists on Sri Lanka. I'm pretty sure the Tamils aren't Muslim though.

[freedom_from_socialism]

He looked like Yasser Arafat so I guess he wasn't Tamil. Besides, Tamils are more interested in terrorizing Sri Lanka and blowing up Indian Prime Ministers. ;)

[EggsAckley]

What I still don't "get" is what he thought he would accomplish
by giving himself a hotfoot. IQ test called for here, IMO.

[Incorrigible]

But is he a Tamil Tiger?

The LTTE (Deadly Lankan terror group) got a pass from the administration's terrorist list. If this guy is a Tiger, then there might actually be some relief in Columbo tonight.

[Pilsner]

Tariq is the name of a star, or the name of a famous Moslem general who attacked Spain.

Isn't Gibraltar a corruption of an Arabic word meaning Fort Tariq?

[week 71]

Allow me to suggest we strip search everyone that looks even remotely Muslim.

[Incorrigible]

Ha! We were thinking the same thing at the same time.

Tamils are a mixture of religions. It's more of a regional thing with Southern India and Sri Lanka. There are Tamils that are Muslim.

[EggsAckley]

With all the confusing information we have been trying to absorb,
I'm having trouble dredging up the answer to "who is Tariq Azziz?"
I know that know the answer, but my mind is "like jello" this morning.

[Chad Fairbanks]

Or, he could be an Al Qaida member - not ALL 'arab' terrorists are Arabs... the training camps of the terrorists, at least in the 80s, were very internationalized and 'multi-cultural'... They were bound by ideology and/or religion...

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Iraqi foreign minister.