This story was raised by a previous recommended diarist and I feel that this needs to be recommended again, in light of the fact that:
1. Bushco. is using the latest terror plot for political purposes
2. Michael Chertoff has actually alluded to the 1995 plot of which I will refer.
Chertoff said the plan was reminiscent of a plot by September 11 coordinator Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who in 1995 had envisioned detonating bombs on 11 airlines possibly traveling over the Pacific Ocean.
You see, it is well known — by doing a Google search — that a very similar plot to disguise chemicals on planes for terrorist purposes is not “news” at all.
It was code-named, “Operation Bojinka”:
The Bojinka plot in 1995 was anything but nonsense. At an apartment in Manila, Yousef began mixing chemicals, which he planned to put into containers that would be carried on board airliners, much like the plotters in Britain are alleged to have been planning.
The only difference with this plot, that I have read, is that the explosives would be hooked up to timing devices and the bomber would disembark after setting the bomb underneath the seat.
TESTS EXECUTED
However, this was not only a “plot” in it’s “planning stages”, as this British plot seems to be — TWO live tests had already been performed. One of the tests killed a Japanese civilian and almost brought down the plane itself.
To rehearse the operations, a practice bomb was detonated in a Manila theater late in 1994. Another bomb was concealed aboard Philippine Airlines Flight 434 from Manila to Tokyo 10 days later. The bomb exploded on the way to Tokyo, killing a passenger, but the pilot managed to land the damaged 747. American prosecutors later concluded that Yousef had taken a liquid explosive onto the plane before disembarking.
Does this sound familiar?
According to investigators, Yousef’s specialty was making bombs from innocuous-looking objects that could be smuggled through airport security – a digital wristwatch modified to serve as a timer, or a plastic bottle for contact lens solution filled with liquid components for nitroglycerine.
Just in case your wondering if this was just an isolated incident which was only dreamt up by a couple of madmen:
Brian Parr, a Secret Service agent, testified at the trial that under questioning Yousef made clear that other terrorists were aware of the explosive technique, and he did not want to compromise their ability to carry out similar acts.
Remember. This was known 12 years ago!
Parr said that Yousef “specifically said that he would have used a different type of device that even the most sophisticated bomb-screening machines would not have been able to detect.”
Mary Jo White, the former United States attorney whose office successfully investigated and prosecuted Yousef in the Bojinka plot, recalled: “It was frightening. There were people wandering the globe able to do this. And that was 10 years ago.”
So, I ask Mr. Chertoff and the rest of the officials in Britain and the United States…
If this — almost exact — terrorist plot was past the testing stages in 1994 — why the hell are we dealing with it now as though it was something new?
I don’t mean to be an cynical asshole. Maybe there’s a reasonable explanation. Maybe there are details that I’m not aware of. Regardless, this question needs to be answered — and not in 12 more years.
For it seems that you were helping the terrorists, Mr. Chertoff.
This question needs to be answered NOW! Your reputation is again at stake.
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I’ve discovered an article at Slate, by Daniel Benjamin that specifically deals with the fact that this plot is nothing new. It mentions all of the details. Except it doesn’t ask the most important question I pose in this diary. Incredible!
It has been widely known among aviation and counterterrorism experts that the security upgrades of the post-9/11 period have done little to prevent one of these “liquid bombs” from getting onboard a plane–it is unclear if anything short of banning all liquids in carry-on and stowed baggage could make a difference.
Here’s a CNN report also explicitly detailing operation Bojinka — but again, no questions about why Chertoff waited until now to implement the safety measures. The reporter simply repeats the pablum that the terrorists are constantly lookin’ to git ya.
(click on pic to view video)
Good start. But why not finish?
And could someone please tell me what sense THIS makes (from Time):
The possibility that liquid explosives could be smuggled onto a plane is not a surprise to counterterrorism experts, and the tightening of U.S. airport security could only be temporary as security officials learn more about the extent of the plot and how to defend against such an attack. The current measures — stripping passengers of anything liquid in their carry-on luggage — were in reaction to these particular arrests, and not to the realization of a new, unforeseen threat. “We’re primarily concerned about this particular plot,” said Allen, implying that the new security measures are not permanent.
So, what? These experts believe that there is no other threats out there who will use the same methods? What kind of nonsense is this?!
From the same article:
With such a rich history, liquid explosives are sure to challenge America’s counter-terror defenses for many years to come.
What? And they weren’t after 1994-95? Or after 2001? Or after 2003? Jeezus! The obtuseness of American Journalists is just staggering!