Mon, Dec 29, 2003
Saudi Authorities Reportedly Arrest 2 Pilots, Confiscate Planes
Loaded With Explosives
Two Islamic terrorists
had already packed their GA aircraft with explosives and were
intent on diving them into a British Airways 777 before they were
nabbed by authorities in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. That word comes from
a senior member of Britain's parliament, who says he'll provide
more details after the legislative assembly reconvenes from
Christmas break.
Patrick Mercer, a Tory spokesman for British Homeland Security,
says 380 people were on board the BA flight from Riyadh. He says
the terrorists intended to crash their small planes into the
jetliner as it taxied for takeoff. Mercer quoted "unimpeachable"
Saudi sources in telling the story.
Officially, the British Foreign Office Sunday renewed its
warning to travelers in Saudi Arabia, saying new attacks may be
imminent. "We continue to believe terrorists are planning further
attacks in Saudi Arabia, and that these could be in the final
stages of preparation. The threat includes, but is not limited to,
residential compounds," said a Foreign Office statement.
Saturday, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he had
"reliable" intelligence that Islamic terrorists planned to hijack
an aircraft and crash it into the Vatican, hoping to kill the
Pope.
"A hijacked plane into the Vatican," Berlusconi told Milan's
Libero newspaper. "An attack from the sky, is that clear? The
threat of terrorism is very high in this instant. I passed
Christmas Eve in Rome to deal with the situation. Now I feel
calm."
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