LONDON - British officials identified 19 of the suspects accused of plotting
to blow up U.S.-bound aircraft on Friday, making public a list of names that
fueled suspicions of a Pakistan connection. Travelers at Britain's airports
again struggled with increased security, and dozens more flights were canceled.
Five Pakistanis have been arrested in Pakistan as suspected "facilitators" of
the plot, a government official said, in addition to two Britons arrested there
about a week ago.
The Bank of England said it had frozen the accounts of 19 people arrested on
Thursday. The men, ranging in age from 17 to 35, were said to be British
Muslims, and neighbors said at least two of those arrested were converts to
Islam.
Investigators, describing a plot on the scale of the Sept. 11 attacks in the
United States, said the attackers planned to use common electronic devices to
detonate liquid explosives to bring down as many as 10 planes.
The bombs were to be assembled on the aircraft apparently with peroxide-based
solution and everyday carry-on items such as a disposable camera or a music
player, two American law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. The
officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Britain asked that no
information be released.
A federal law enforcement official in Washington said that at least one
martyrdom tape was found during raids across England on Thursday. Such a tape,
as well as the scheme to strike a range of targets at roughly the same time, is
an earmark of al-Qaida.
Airline passengers faced a second day of disruptions and disappointment as
airports struggled to restore flight schedules.
"It is going to be another difficult day today, both for airports and for
passengers, but there is cause for optimism that we will get more flights off
today," said Stephen Nelson, chief executive of British Airports Authority,
which runs Britain's major airports.
At Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport, around 70 percent of flights were
running Friday, but many passengers turned around and headed home after an early
morning announcement that a raft of flights had been canceled, including British
Airways services to San Francisco and Los Angeles.
British authorities arrested 24 people on Thursday based partly on
intelligence from Pakistan. More arrests were expected, the official said. The
suspects were believed to be mainly British Muslims, at least some of Pakistani
ancestry.
Agents in Pakistan arrested at least seven people, including two British
nationals of Pakistani origin, who provided information on the terror plot, a
senior government official said Friday. The arrests were made in the eastern
city of Lahore and in Karachi, the official said on condition of anonymity
because he did not have authority to speak formally on the issue.
Two were Britons arrested about a week ago, he said. The five Pakistanis were
arrested on suspicion that they served as local "facilitators" for the two
Britons, the official said. It wasn't clear when they'd been detained.
The Guardian newspaper, citing unidentified British government sources, said
that after the arrests a message was sent to Britain telling the plots, "do your
attacks now." That message was intercepted and decoded earlier this week, The
Guardian said.
A U.S. congressman briefed by intelligence officials, who did not want to be
identified because of the sensitivity of the investigation, said U.S.
intelligence had intercepted terrorist chatter.
The threat of liquid explosives led to a ban on carrying nearly any kind of
fluid aboard an aircraft. Mothers tasted baby bottles in front of airport
security guards to prove it contained milk or formula, not a component of an
explosive.
The raids in Britain on Thursday followed a monthslong investigation, but
U.S. intelligence officials said authorities moved quickly after learning the
plotters hoped to stage a practice run within two days, with the actual attack
expected just days after that.
The test run was designed to see whether the plotters would be able to
smuggle the needed materials aboard the planes, the officials said, speaking on
condition of anonymity.
Targeted were United, American and Continental Airlines flights from Britain
to major U.S. destinations, which counterterrorism officials said probably
included New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa said the individuals plotted to detonate liquid explosive devices
on as many as 10 aircraft.
A British police official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the
sensitivity of the investigation, said the suspects were "homegrown," though it
was not immediately clear if all were British citizens.
Tariq Azim Khan, the Pakistani minister of state for information, said "these
people were born and brought up in the United Kingdom. Some of them may have
parents who were immigrants from Pakistan."
Raids were carried out at homes in London, the nearby town of High Wycombe
and in Birmingham, in central England. Searches continued throughout the day,
and police cordoned off streets in several locations. Police also combed a
wooded area in High Wycombe.
Neighbors identified one of the suspects as Don Stewart-Whyte, 21, from High
Wycombe, a convert who changed his name to Abdul Waheed.
"He converted to Islam about six months ago and grew a full beard," said a
neighbor, who refused to be identified. "He used to smoke weed and drink a lot
but he is completely different now."
Ibrahim Savant of Walthamstow, one of the names on the Bank of England list,
was a convert formerly known as Oliver, neighbors said.
