High alert as terror plot 'foiled'
By Adrian Croft in London
August 10, 2006 05:24pm
Article from: Reuters

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20082570-1702,00.html
BRITISH police said tonight they had thwarted a plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight between Britain and the US, and had arrested more than 15 people.
Britain's security services raised the threat level to the country to "critical" from "severe", the highest of its five ratings which means "an attack is expected imminently".
The United States Government also raised its threat levels, saying it could not be sure the plot had been completely thwarted.
News of the arrests and heightened security threat came amid high international tension over the war in Lebanon and the week Prime Minister Tony Blair headed on holiday to the Caribbean.
"A major terrorist plot to allegedly blow up aircraft in mid-flight has been disrupted," a London police spokesman said, adding they believed the intention was to target flights from Britain to the US.
Following the arrests, security at all British airports was increased and additional security measures put in place.
Britain's Home Secretary John Reid said it was "very significant plot" aimed at bringing "down a number of aircraft through mid-flight explosions".
"We are doing everything possible to disrupt any further terrorist activity," he said in a statement. "This will mean major disruption at all UK airports."
The security alert comes 13 months after four British Islamist suicide bombers killed 52 people and injured about 700 on London's transport network.
In a speech yesterday, Mr Reid said Britain was in the most sustained period of severe threat since the end of World War II and warned there was no room for complacency.
A police source said more than 15 people had been arrested.
"We don't think that it was planned to happen today," the source told Reuters. "We had intelligence and we had to move against what was a planned attack.
"The plan was to take a ready-made explosive device rather than something which would be made up on board," he said. Following the arrests, security at all British airports was increased and additional security measures put in place.
Independent terrorism expert Paul Beaver said hand luggage was a weak spot in airport security.
"A laptop computer can carry enough explosives to blow up an aircraft," he said.












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