Hudson River bomb plot

Last updated

On July 6, 2006, the New York Daily News released a story claiming the FBI had disrupted a terrorist plot to bomb the tunnels connecting New Jersey with Manhattan and drown the New York Financial District with a torrent of water.

Contents

The following day the FBI clarified there had been online messages about the idea, but none of the authors were in the United States or making efforts to enter the United States, and counterterrorism officials cast doubt on the significance of the alleged plot and some authorities questioned the breaking news [1] first reported by James Gordon Meek. [2]

The alleged plot was unfeasible since the tunnel is embedded in bedrock, and the target is above sea level. there was no evidence that the plotters had taken any actions, such as buying explosives or sending money. Two U.S. counterterrorism officials, speaking to the Washington Post, discounted the ability of the conspirators to carry out an attack. [3] The report, however, made international news. [4] The government initially protested about how the story was leaked to the New York Daily News. [5] The Department of Homeland Security assured the public there "was never a concern that (the plot) would actually be executed". [6] Although Meek had specifically said the Holland Tunnel was the target of the plot, authorities disputed this and said there had been "extremely vague" messages sent between online user accounts on a website they were monitoring. [7] [8]

Assem Hammoud

Professor Assem Hammoud was said to be a key figure. He graduated from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada graduating with a 2002 Bachelor of Commerce degree before returning to Beirut to teach at the Lebanese International University - although his girlfriend and one of his brothers remained in Canada. [9] [10]

As a result of the news of the alleged plot, Hammoud was arrested by Lebanese authorities in the summer of 2006, and was released on bail in June 2008. [11]

The Lebanese Internal Security Forces released a confession from Hammoud agreeing he made plans hoping to follow in the path of Osama bin Laden [12]

In 2003, Hammoud had met with a Syrian who took him to Ain al-Hilweh, a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon, to practice with weapons. In 2005, Hammoud met with a foreign man who asked Hammoud to provide weapons and shelter to mujahideen. [13]

Related Research Articles

The FBI Most Wanted Terrorists is a list created and first released on October 10, 2001, with the authority of United States President George W. Bush, following the September 11 attacks (9/11 incident). Initially, the list contained 22 of the top suspected terrorists chosen by the FBI, all of whom had earlier been indicted for acts of terrorism between 1985 and 1998. None of the 22 had been captured by US or other authorities by that date. Of the 22, only Osama Bin Laden was by then already listed on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish Defense League</span> Jewish far-right organization

The Jewish Defense League (JDL) is a far-right religious and political organization in the United States and Canada. Its stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"; it has been classified as "right-wing terrorist group" by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) since 2001, and is also designated as hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. According to the FBI, the JDL has been involved in plotting and executing acts of terrorism within the United States. Most terrorist watch groups classify the group as inactive as of 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000 millennium attack plots</span> Planned terrorist attacks linked to al-Qaeda in the year 2000

A series of Islamist terrorist attacks linked to al-Qaeda were planned to occur on or near January 1, 2000, in the context of millennium celebrations, including bombing plots against four tourist sites in Jordan, the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), USS The Sullivans, and the hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adnan Gulshair el Shukrijumah</span> Al-Qaeda member

Adnan Gulshair el Shukrijumah was a citizen of Saudi Arabia and a senior member of Al-Qaeda. He was born in Saudi Arabia and grew up in the United States.

Nazih Abdul-Hamed Nabih al-Ruqai'i, known by the alias Abu Anas al-Libi, was a Libyan under indictment in the United States for his part in the 1998 United States embassy bombings. He worked as a computer specialist for al-Qaeda. He was an ethnic Libyan, born in Tripoli.

The New York City landmark bomb plot was a plan to follow up the February 1993 World Trade Center bombing and was designed to inflict mass casualties on American soil by attacking well-known landmark targets throughout New York City, United States. If the attack had been successful, thousands likely would have died.

<i>The One Percent Doctrine</i> Nonfiction book by Ron Suskind

The One Percent Doctrine (ISBN 0-7432-7109-2) is a nonfiction book by Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Ron Suskind about America's hunt for terrorists since September 11, 2001. On July 24, 2006, it reached number 3 on the New York Times Best Seller list.

Rashid Rauf was an alleged Al-Qaeda operative. He was a dual citizen of Britain and Pakistan who was arrested in Bhawalpur, Pakistan in connection with the 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot in August 2006, a day before some arrests were made in Britain. The Pakistani Interior Minister, Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, claimed that "he is an al Qaeda operative with linkages in Afghanistan". He was identified as one of the ringleaders of the alleged plot. In December 2006, the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi found no evidence that he had been involved in terrorist activities, and his charges were downgraded to forgery and possession of explosives. A 2022 article offers an assessment of the impact of Operation Overt and refers to Rauf's alleged role

The 2007 John F. Kennedy International Airport attack plot was an alleged Islamist terrorist plot to blow up a system of jet fuel supply tanks and pipelines that feed fuel to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in Queens, New York. These pipelines travel throughout the undergrounds of New York City in densely populated areas. The alleged plot was foiled when an undercover law enforcement official was recruited to the homegrown terrorist cell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terrorism in the United States</span> Systematic or threatened use of violence to create a general climate of fear

In the United States, a common definition of terrorism is the systematic or threatened use of violence in order to create a general climate of fear to intimidate a population or government and thereby effect political, religious, or ideological change. This article serves as a list and a compilation of acts of terrorism, attempts to commit acts of terrorism, and other such items which pertain to terrorist activities which are engaged in by non-state actors or spies who are acting in the interests of state actors or persons who are acting without the approval of foreign governments within the domestic borders of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Bronx terrorism plot</span> Foiled terrorism plot

On May 20, 2009, US law enforcement arrested four men in connection with a fake plot concocted by a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) informant to shoot down military airplanes flying out of an Air National Guard base in Newburgh, New York, and blow up two synagogues in the Riverdale community of the Bronx using weapons supplied by the FBI. The group was led by Shahed Hussain, a Pakistani criminal who was working for the FBI to avoid deportation for having defrauded the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Hussain has never been charged in the United States with any terrorism related offenses and was paid nearly US$100,000 by the FBI for his work on this plot.

The 2005 Los Angeles bomb plot was a 2005 effort by a group of ex-convicts calling themselves Jamiyyat Ul-Islam Is-Saheeh to bomb several military bases, a number of synagogues, and an Israeli consulate in California.

The 2009 New York City Subway and United Kingdom plot was a plan to bomb the New York City Subway as well as a target in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Najibullah Zazi</span> Afghan member of Al-Qaeda (born 1985)

Najibullah Zazi is an Afghan-American who was arrested in September 2009 as part of the 2009 U.S. al Qaeda group accused of planning suicide bombings on the New York City Subway system, and who pleaded guilty as have two other defendants. U.S. prosecutors said Saleh al-Somali, al-Qaeda's head of external operations, and Rashid Rauf, an al-Qaeda operative, ordered the attack. Both were later killed in drone attacks.

Michael C. Finton, also known as Talib Islam, is an American convert to Islam and a part-time cook who attempted to bomb the Paul Findley Federal Building and the adjacent offices of Congressman Aaron Schock in downtown Springfield, Illinois, on 24 September 2009. He pleaded guilty in federal court on 9 May 2011 and was sentenced to 28 years in prison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Times Square car bombing attempt</span> Attempted terrorist attack in New York City

On May 1, 2010, a terrorist attack was attempted in Times Square in Manhattan, New York, United States. Two street vendors alerted NYPD after they spotted smoke coming from a vehicle, and a car bomb was discovered. The bomb had been ignited, but failed to explode, and was disarmed before it caused any casualties. Two days later, federal agents arrested Faisal Shahzad, a 30-year-old Pakistan-born resident of Bridgeport, Connecticut, who had become a U.S. citizen in April 2009. He was arrested after he had boarded Emirates Flight 202 to Dubai at John F. Kennedy International Airport. He admitted attempting the car bombing and said that he had trained at a Pakistani terrorist training camp, according to U.S. officials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faisal Shahzad</span> American convicted terrorist incarcerated in a US federal prison

Faisal Shahzad is a Pakistani-American citizen who was arrested for the attempted May 1, 2010, Times Square car bombing. On June 21, 2010, in Federal District Court in Manhattan, he confessed to 10 counts arising from the bombing attempt. Throughout his court appearance, Shahzad was unrepentant. The United States Attorney indicated there was no plea deal, so Shahzad faced the maximum sentence, a mandatory life term.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pressure cooker bomb</span> Improvised explosive device

A pressure cooker bomb is an improvised explosive device (IED) created by inserting explosive material into a pressure cooker and attaching a blasting cap into the cover of the cooker.

Four suspects were arrested without charge by Australian Federal Police on 29 July 2017 in Sydney on suspicion of an Islamic State inspired plot to plant a bomb on an Etihad Airways flight departing Sydney on 15 July 2017.

References

  1. ↑ "Plot to Attack N.Y. Foiled - Transit Tunnels to N.J. Called Targets y Spencer S. Hsu and Robin Wright., The Washington Post , July 8, 2006
  2. ↑ David Ford (29 April 2013). "ABC News Expands its Award-Winning Investigative Unit". ABC News . Retrieved 22 October 2022. In 2006, while a reporter for the New York Daily News, James was the first to report that the FBI had foiled a plan to bomb New York City's tunnels in an effort to flood lower Manhattan
  3. ↑ "Manhattan tunnel terror plot foiled, say US police". London: Guardian Unlimited. July 7, 2006. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Three held over NY tunnel 'plot'". BBC News. July 8, 2006.
  5. ↑ Hsu, Spencer S.; Wright, Robin (July 8, 2006). "Plot to Attack N.Y. Foiled". Washington Post . Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  6. ↑ "Chertoff Addresses NY Plot While In Boston". CBS 4 (Boston). July 7, 2006.[ permanent dead link ]
  7. ↑ "N.Y.C. Transit Bomb Plot Thwarted". CBS News. July 7, 2006.[ permanent dead link ]
  8. ↑ "Feds say 'real deal' plot on NY-NJ tunnel is foiled". AP via ABC4.com. July 7, 2006.[ permanent dead link ]
  9. ↑ "Canadian connection in alleged N.Y. bomb plot". CBC News. July 7, 2006.
  10. ↑ "Tunnel suspect was waiting for visa to Canada when arrested". CBC News. July 11, 2006.
  11. ↑ https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ho9jXb3ZddnoLtYg5qugsaUUrO-wD96VVNK00 [ dead link ]
  12. ↑ "FBI Disrupts New York Transportation Plot". AP via forbes.com. July 7, 2006. Archived from the original on July 13, 2006.
  13. ↑ "Lebanese arrest suspect in New York bomb plot". Daily Star (Lebanon). July 8, 2006.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.