Female Suicide Bombers May Be Heading to U.S.
-Richard Esposito, Rhonda Schwartz & Brian Ross
American law enforcement officials have been told to be on the lookout for female suicide bombers who may attempt to enter the U.S.
One official said at least two of them are believed to be connected to al-Qaeda in Yemen, and may have a non-Arab appearance and be traveling on Western passports.
The man accused of attempting to explode a bomb on Northwest flight 253, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, told FBI agents there were a number of other people who trained with him in Yemen.
The alert comes during a week in which American law enforcement officials described an "unusually high" number of people on the no-fly list attempting to board flights to or in the United States. At least six people on the no-fly list were denied boarding in a 48-hour period, according to the officials.
On Saturday, an Egyptian man on the no-fly list was stopped from flying on American Airlines flight 113 from London to Miami. The next day, a Saudi Arabian passenger was stopped from boarding United Airlines flight 929 to Chicago.
U.S. law enforcement agencies have quietly begun an intense and widespread effort to investigate any American resident who traveled to Yemen in recent months or who was in contact with the radical cleric Anwar Awlaki, who serves as an al Qaeda recruiter.
(ABC News)
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-Richard Esposito, Rhonda Schwartz & Brian Ross
American law enforcement officials have been told to be on the lookout for female suicide bombers who may attempt to enter the U.S.
One official said at least two of them are believed to be connected to al-Qaeda in Yemen, and may have a non-Arab appearance and be traveling on Western passports.
The man accused of attempting to explode a bomb on Northwest flight 253, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, told FBI agents there were a number of other people who trained with him in Yemen.
The alert comes during a week in which American law enforcement officials described an "unusually high" number of people on the no-fly list attempting to board flights to or in the United States. At least six people on the no-fly list were denied boarding in a 48-hour period, according to the officials.
On Saturday, an Egyptian man on the no-fly list was stopped from flying on American Airlines flight 113 from London to Miami. The next day, a Saudi Arabian passenger was stopped from boarding United Airlines flight 929 to Chicago.
U.S. law enforcement agencies have quietly begun an intense and widespread effort to investigate any American resident who traveled to Yemen in recent months or who was in contact with the radical cleric Anwar Awlaki, who serves as an al Qaeda recruiter.
(ABC News)
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