Sources: 2 in plot explored U.S. jobs
The probe of bomb attempts in Britain has reached Phila., where a certifying agency for foreign doctors has offices.
By John Shiffman and George Anastasia
Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writers
Two of the seven doctors arrested in Britain after last week's failed bomb attacks had explored the possibility of coming to the United States, making inquiries to a Philadelphia-based organization, sources said.
The two took preliminary steps to apply for graduate medical-education programs in this country, sources familiar with the FBI investigation told The Inquirer.
This is the first indication that members of the alleged terror cell in Britain expressed any interest in coming to the United States.
After the Glasgow airport bombing attempt, FBI agents visited the Philadelphia headquarters of the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates. The nonprofit organization is a national clearinghouse that certifies the qualifications of foreign-trained doctors to work as medical residents in the United States.
Agents found records there on two of the British suspects. One of them, sources said, is neurologist Mohammed Jamil Asha, 26, a Jordanian who was born in Saudi Arabia and is of Palestinian descent.
The name of the second doctor who expressed an interest in coming to the United States could not be learned.
Stephen S. Seeling, vice president of operations for the educational commission, confirmed that FBI agents visited him at his Market Street office this week.
Citing privacy rules, Seeling said he could not discuss the circumstances of the visit, or confirm any information about any foreign doctor who may have contacted the commission about coming to this country.
It could not be determined when Asha expressed an interest in coming to the United States, but, according to British news accounts, he graduated from medical school in Jordan in 2004.
Asha and his wife, Marwa, 27, a medical technician, were arrested by British authorities on a highway near their Manchester home Saturday, hours after the car-bomb attempt at the Glasgow airport.
Also in the car was their 11/2-year-old son, who was placed with British social services.
Asha and his wife are among eight foreign medical professionals arrested by British authorities in the plot, which began when two bomb-laden Mercedes-Benzes were discovered last week near a London nightclub.
British news reports have linked Asha with one of the Glasgow suspects, Bilal Abdulla. Asha worked eight weeks at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, where Abdulla lived in 2001.
According to the BBC, Asha trained at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford. He moved to the University Hospital of North Staffordshire and was working there as a neurologist. A doctor at Royal Alexandra Hospital in Glasgow said Asha also kept an office there.
In Jordan, security officials said Asha had no criminal record, and friends and family said they found it hard to believe he and his wife were connected with the plot.
"We are an educated family and we reject all kinds of terrorism," Asha's mother, Fawzieh, told the Associated Press.
It could not be learned yesterday how far Asha and the second doctor had proceeded in the certification process, nor where in the United States they hoped to study.
Two car bombs found in central London
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Glasgow attacked as terror threat spreads
Mark Townsend, Jo Revill and Paul Kelbie
Saturday June 30, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
Britain is braced tonight for a fresh wave of terrorist attacks after an attempted car bombing of Glasgow airport confirmed the reality of a renewed UK offensive by Islamic extremists.
Just four days into his premiership, Gordon Brown is facing the most concerted threat to Britain since the London attacks of July 2005. Tonight he summoned intelligence chiefs and ministers to a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee in Whitehall to discuss the deteriorating security situation.
Moments before the meeting, police stopped cars entering Edinburgh and Newcastle airports. An hour later, just after 7pm, Blackpool airport was sealed off by armed police amid intelligence that a nationwide terror cell might be planning similar car bomb attacks.
Earlier, there were extraordinary scenes at Scotland's busiest airport after a Jeep Cherokee wreathed in flames crashed into the doors of the main terminal building. Two Asian men who were in the vehicle, one badly burnt, were arrested. One witness described one of them throwing petrol over himself and setting it ablaze while the other was held by holidaymakers before being apprehended by police.
The attack, bearing the hallmarks of an al-Qaeda plot, occurred at 3:11pm today, 36 hours after extremists attempted a double car bomb attack in the heart of London's West End using two Mercedes packed with petrol, nails and 'patio gas' canisters.
Security sources told The Observer that the two attacks in London and Glasgow appeared to be connected, evidence that a new cell using new tactics has emerged in Britain, but one which appears to have slipped completely under the radar of the security services. No intelligence had been intercepted into any of the three attempted car bombings.
Amid concern over further attacks - the classic modus operandi of al-Qaeda is a sudden wave of strikes - police also said that they were stepping up the hunt for five terror suspects who have evaded control orders and are on the run.
In a day of dramatic developments, intelligence sources confirmed the attack on Glasgow airport appeared to be aimed at killing passengers setting off on the first day of the Scottish school holidays. It was only foiled because the Jeep hit protective bollards and became stuck in the terminal doors.
Airports around the world have now been put on heightened alert for a further wave of attacks.
As with the failed London attack, the explosives and gas canisters which appeared to be in the Jeep did not detonate, a stroke of fortune that may again have saved the lives of hundreds of people, many embarking today for their summer holidays.
Witnesses described chaotic scenes as the Jeep sped towards the terminal entrance but was foiled by bollards and became wedged in the doorway.
Robin Patterson, 42, of Rochester, Kent, saw the car burst into flames. 'It was just a small fire at first. Then there was an enormous explosion and it really was a big explosion,' he said. 'The guy next to the car, his skin and clothes just fell off him. He came running away from the car and he was like an absolute lunatic. He was just literally running away from the police.'
Holidaymaker Richard Gray said: 'A green Jeep was in the middle of the doorway burning. There was an Asian guy who was pulled out of the car by two police officers, who he was trying to fight off. They got him on the ground. The car didn't explode. There were a few bangs, which presumably was the petrol.'
Another witness said: 'I heard the sound of a car's wheels spinning and saw smoke coming out. I saw a Jeep Cherokee apparently as if it was trying to get right through the doors into the terminal building. There were flames coming out from underneath, then some men appeared from in among the flames. The police ran over and the people started fighting with the police. I then heard what sounded like an explosion.'
Mark Townsend, Jo Revill and Paul Kelbie
Saturday June 30, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
Britain is braced tonight for a fresh wave of terrorist attacks after an attempted car bombing of Glasgow airport confirmed the reality of a renewed UK offensive by Islamic extremists.
Just four days into his premiership, Gordon Brown is facing the most concerted threat to Britain since the London attacks of July 2005. Tonight he summoned intelligence chiefs and ministers to a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee in Whitehall to discuss the deteriorating security situation.
Moments before the meeting, police stopped cars entering Edinburgh and Newcastle airports. An hour later, just after 7pm, Blackpool airport was sealed off by armed police amid intelligence that a nationwide terror cell might be planning similar car bomb attacks.
Earlier, there were extraordinary scenes at Scotland's busiest airport after a Jeep Cherokee wreathed in flames crashed into the doors of the main terminal building. Two Asian men who were in the vehicle, one badly burnt, were arrested. One witness described one of them throwing petrol over himself and setting it ablaze while the other was held by holidaymakers before being apprehended by police.
The attack, bearing the hallmarks of an al-Qaeda plot, occurred at 3:11pm today, 36 hours after extremists attempted a double car bomb attack in the heart of London's West End using two Mercedes packed with petrol, nails and 'patio gas' canisters.
Security sources told The Observer that the two attacks in London and Glasgow appeared to be connected, evidence that a new cell using new tactics has emerged in Britain, but one which appears to have slipped completely under the radar of the security services. No intelligence had been intercepted into any of the three attempted car bombings.
Amid concern over further attacks - the classic modus operandi of al-Qaeda is a sudden wave of strikes - police also said that they were stepping up the hunt for five terror suspects who have evaded control orders and are on the run.
In a day of dramatic developments, intelligence sources confirmed the attack on Glasgow airport appeared to be aimed at killing passengers setting off on the first day of the Scottish school holidays. It was only foiled because the Jeep hit protective bollards and became stuck in the terminal doors.
Airports around the world have now been put on heightened alert for a further wave of attacks.
As with the failed London attack, the explosives and gas canisters which appeared to be in the Jeep did not detonate, a stroke of fortune that may again have saved the lives of hundreds of people, many embarking today for their summer holidays.
Witnesses described chaotic scenes as the Jeep sped towards the terminal entrance but was foiled by bollards and became wedged in the doorway.
Robin Patterson, 42, of Rochester, Kent, saw the car burst into flames. 'It was just a small fire at first. Then there was an enormous explosion and it really was a big explosion,' he said. 'The guy next to the car, his skin and clothes just fell off him. He came running away from the car and he was like an absolute lunatic. He was just literally running away from the police.'
Holidaymaker Richard Gray said: 'A green Jeep was in the middle of the doorway burning. There was an Asian guy who was pulled out of the car by two police officers, who he was trying to fight off. They got him on the ground. The car didn't explode. There were a few bangs, which presumably was the petrol.'
Another witness said: 'I heard the sound of a car's wheels spinning and saw smoke coming out. I saw a Jeep Cherokee apparently as if it was trying to get right through the doors into the terminal building. There were flames coming out from underneath, then some men appeared from in among the flames. The police ran over and the people started fighting with the police. I then heard what sounded like an explosion.'
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler
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Sonic Youth
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Two car bombs found in West End
BBC News
Police have confirmed they are now investigating the discovery of two car bombs in the West End of London.
Police said the second device was found in a Mercedes hours after the car had been given a parking ticket in Cockspur Street and towed to Park Lane.
Another Mercedes, with a bomb made up of 60 litres of petrol, gas cylinders and nails, had been found outside a nightclub in Haymarket at 0130 BST.
Both devices were similar, viable and clearly linked, police said.
At a news conference on Friday evening, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command, said the discovery of the second device was "obviously troubling".
"There was a considerable amount of fuel and gas canisters, as in the first vehicle. There was also a substantial quantity of nails," he said.
Parking ticket
An ambulance crew spotted smoke inside the first, metallic green Mercedes by chance after they were called to the Tiger Tiger night club to help a sick person.
Police then defused a bomb inside.
The second device was found in a blue 280E model Mercedes. It was given a parking ticket at 0230 BST on Friday after being found illegally parked in Cockspur Street.
The vehicle was then towed to the Park Lane car pound about an hour later.
The BBC's Daniel Sandford said police had been alerted to it after staff who had heard about the Haymarket bomb noticed a strong smell of petrol coming from it.
Park Lane was closed for much of the afternoon while bomb squad officers checked the vehicle and was eventually reopened at 1930 BST.
The Haymarket area remains closed as dozens of officers carry out forensic searches. The first Mercedes is being tested at the Forensics Explosives Laboratory in Kent and the second has now been towed away for examination.
CCTV footage from Haymarket is also being examined and police are believed to be making some progress towards getting an image of the driver.
Extra patrol
Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur urged people to be "alert and vigilant" and report anything suspicious to police.
Disruption would be kept to a minimum, he said, although the police were reviewing the safety of big public events taking place in the capital over the weekend.
"I want to reassure Londoners that we are doing everything possible to make them safe," he added.
Following Friday's discoveries, police patrols in central London were stepped up "to provide a visible reassurance", rather than in response to a specific threat.
Officers were visiting licensed premises to reiterate crime prevention and safety advice, said a police spokesman.
"International elements" are believed to have been involved with the Haymarket bomb, Whitehall sources have told the BBC.
Police sources said it would have caused "carnage" if it exploded.
Nightclubbers
Speaking about the first bomb, DAC Clarke said: "It is obvious that if the device had detonated there could have been serious injury or loss of life."
The ambulance had been called to the nightclub - where up to 1,700 people were inside - when they spotted what they thought was smoke, now believed to have been vapour released from the petrol.
Bomb experts manually disabled the "potentially viable explosive device" in Haymarket.
Scotland Yard declined to comment on reports a mobile phone was found in the Mercedes at Haymarket that may have been intended to trigger the explosion.
One report claimed a police officer disconnected the mobile phone before bomb squad officers arrived.
Mobile phones have been used to detonate bombs in Iraq and Indonesia and in other terror attacks, such as the 2004 Madrid bombings.
The car bombs have echoes of other terror plots. Five men were jailed for life in April for a UK bomb plot linked to al-Qaeda that targeted a shopping centre and a nightclub with a giant fertiliser bomb.
And Dhiren Barot was jailed for life last November for conspiring to park limousines packed with gas canisters underneath high-profile buildings before detonating them.
DAC Clarke said it was too early to say who was responsible but the Haymarket incident "resonated" with previous terror plots.
Speaking in Downing Street after meeting Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the new Home Office minister for security, Admiral Sir Alan West, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith urged members of the public to report anything suspicious to the police.
Mr Brown said Britain faced "a serious and continuous threat" and the public "need to be alert" at all times.
BBC political editor Nick Robinson said he understood another meeting of the government's emergencies committee, known as Cobra, would be held on Saturday morning.
The meeting could be chaired by either the prime minister, who is not cancelling any planned engagements, or the home secretary.
The BBC's Andy Tighe said the timing of the car bombs was significant coming two days after Mr Brown became prime minister, and with the second anniversary of the 7 July bombings approaching.
The current terror threat level has been classed severe - one level lower than the highest "critical" - since 14 August 2006.
Intelligence sources said they were keeping an open mind as to who was responsible for the car bombs.
BBC News
Police have confirmed they are now investigating the discovery of two car bombs in the West End of London.
Police said the second device was found in a Mercedes hours after the car had been given a parking ticket in Cockspur Street and towed to Park Lane.
Another Mercedes, with a bomb made up of 60 litres of petrol, gas cylinders and nails, had been found outside a nightclub in Haymarket at 0130 BST.
Both devices were similar, viable and clearly linked, police said.
At a news conference on Friday evening, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command, said the discovery of the second device was "obviously troubling".
"There was a considerable amount of fuel and gas canisters, as in the first vehicle. There was also a substantial quantity of nails," he said.
Parking ticket
An ambulance crew spotted smoke inside the first, metallic green Mercedes by chance after they were called to the Tiger Tiger night club to help a sick person.
Police then defused a bomb inside.
The second device was found in a blue 280E model Mercedes. It was given a parking ticket at 0230 BST on Friday after being found illegally parked in Cockspur Street.
The vehicle was then towed to the Park Lane car pound about an hour later.
The BBC's Daniel Sandford said police had been alerted to it after staff who had heard about the Haymarket bomb noticed a strong smell of petrol coming from it.
Park Lane was closed for much of the afternoon while bomb squad officers checked the vehicle and was eventually reopened at 1930 BST.
The Haymarket area remains closed as dozens of officers carry out forensic searches. The first Mercedes is being tested at the Forensics Explosives Laboratory in Kent and the second has now been towed away for examination.
CCTV footage from Haymarket is also being examined and police are believed to be making some progress towards getting an image of the driver.
Extra patrol
Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur urged people to be "alert and vigilant" and report anything suspicious to police.
Disruption would be kept to a minimum, he said, although the police were reviewing the safety of big public events taking place in the capital over the weekend.
"I want to reassure Londoners that we are doing everything possible to make them safe," he added.
Following Friday's discoveries, police patrols in central London were stepped up "to provide a visible reassurance", rather than in response to a specific threat.
Officers were visiting licensed premises to reiterate crime prevention and safety advice, said a police spokesman.
"International elements" are believed to have been involved with the Haymarket bomb, Whitehall sources have told the BBC.
Police sources said it would have caused "carnage" if it exploded.
Nightclubbers
Speaking about the first bomb, DAC Clarke said: "It is obvious that if the device had detonated there could have been serious injury or loss of life."
The ambulance had been called to the nightclub - where up to 1,700 people were inside - when they spotted what they thought was smoke, now believed to have been vapour released from the petrol.
Bomb experts manually disabled the "potentially viable explosive device" in Haymarket.
Scotland Yard declined to comment on reports a mobile phone was found in the Mercedes at Haymarket that may have been intended to trigger the explosion.
One report claimed a police officer disconnected the mobile phone before bomb squad officers arrived.
Mobile phones have been used to detonate bombs in Iraq and Indonesia and in other terror attacks, such as the 2004 Madrid bombings.
The car bombs have echoes of other terror plots. Five men were jailed for life in April for a UK bomb plot linked to al-Qaeda that targeted a shopping centre and a nightclub with a giant fertiliser bomb.
And Dhiren Barot was jailed for life last November for conspiring to park limousines packed with gas canisters underneath high-profile buildings before detonating them.
DAC Clarke said it was too early to say who was responsible but the Haymarket incident "resonated" with previous terror plots.
Speaking in Downing Street after meeting Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the new Home Office minister for security, Admiral Sir Alan West, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith urged members of the public to report anything suspicious to the police.
Mr Brown said Britain faced "a serious and continuous threat" and the public "need to be alert" at all times.
BBC political editor Nick Robinson said he understood another meeting of the government's emergencies committee, known as Cobra, would be held on Saturday morning.
The meeting could be chaired by either the prime minister, who is not cancelling any planned engagements, or the home secretary.
The BBC's Andy Tighe said the timing of the car bombs was significant coming two days after Mr Brown became prime minister, and with the second anniversary of the 7 July bombings approaching.
The current terror threat level has been classed severe - one level lower than the highest "critical" - since 14 August 2006.
Intelligence sources said they were keeping an open mind as to who was responsible for the car bombs.
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler