Nuclear engineer arrested for al-Qaeda links
Fears that al-Qaeda is planning an attack on the nuclear industry in Europe were renewed yesterday after French secret agents arrested a physicist working at an atomic research centre.
The 32-year-old man, who was detained with his brother, 25, is suspected of providing a list of terrorist targets to North African Islamic radicals. He worked for the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland, according to French police sources.
Agents were said to have intercepted messages in which the physicist, a Frenchman of Algerian origin, had suggested targets in France.
He is believed to have been in contact with members of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, an Algerian-based terror organisation that joined Osama bin Laden’s network in 2007.
“He had expressed a wish or a desire to commit terrorist actions but had not materially prepared them,” an intelligence source said.
After he was identified, during an investigation into a French network that had sent Islamic radicals to Afghanistan, the man was put under surveillance for about 18 months. Last month Judge Christophe Teissier, an investigating magistrate specialising in terrorism, opened a formal inquiry into his activities.
The brothers apparently came to the attention of the secret services when agents monitored the internet as part of the inquiry into the recruitment of extremists to fight in Afghanistan. Several exchanges were recorded between the brothers and suspected al-Qaeda contacts.
The pair were arrested by the Central Directorate of Interior Intelligence (DCRI) at their home in Vienne, eastern France. Police seized two computers, three hard discs and two USB keys.
The men were taken for questioning at the directorate’s headquarters in Levallois-Perret, outside Paris. “Perhaps we have avoided the worst possible scenario,” Brice Hortefeux, the French Interior Minister, said. “We are in a situation of permanent vigilance and we follow the declarations of the leaders of certain organisations day by day. Our vigilance is never lowered. The risk is permanent.”
CERN, the leading European laboratory for the study of sub-atomic physics, said that the suspect had never been in contact with any elements that could be used for terrorist purposes.
The man who was arrested worked on analysis concerning the Large Hadron Collider but was not an employee of CERN and “performed his research under a contract with an outside institute”. None of his research had a potential military application, the organisation added.
In its previous incarnation as the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb fought the Algerian authorities in an attempt to install an Islamic state at the cost of tens of thousands of lives in the 1990s.
Since joining al-Qaeda it has spread its activities to countries such as Mali, Niger and Mauritania. In June it claimed responsibility for the killing of Christopher Leggett, an American humanitarian worker, in Mauritania.
Source : http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article6868246.ece
One shot, the radiation is from depleted uranium used in conventional weapons, not from nuclear bombs.
Though I'm inclined to think that if Al Qaeda scattered similar concentrations of depleted uranium all over Washington it would be described as the world's worst terrorist crime.
...isn't this the time to destroy all the Nukes....be it American, Russian, French or Pakistanis???
---------------------------------------------------------Whenever I find the KEY to SUCCESS...Someone STEALS it.
Ka Pukhtoon ye no dalta daNgg warka: http://www.qatarliving.com/group/pukhtoon-in-qatar
still they are free to carry on this bloody game here.
no dot.com
i don't agree with you
all reseaches lead that american and Israeli used a mini nuclear bobms in iraq and palestine in their wars against "terror"
nothing hidden just google it and you will find a lot of symptoms of radio activity exposure after their wars.
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"It could be a picture
It could be a medicine
it could be a bullet
depends on how you see it"
Japanese are only the victim for these bloody nuclear weapons, targeted by America.
Dont worry Brit , they will all soon have it , There will be some Khan somewhere for them too.
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
Spoken like a true member of the nuclear club :O)
You don't just go out and build nuclear weapons. It needs money, technology, knowhow , delivery systems and a lot lot more..
Otherwise, Saudi and Kuwait would already have them ..
brit agreed 0% (!) on that, Darly.
Brit - I am with you 0% there ;)
Imagine congo, nigeria and sudan having it where the rebels are stronger than the government. That will end the world. lol
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
I agree with Brit. Freedom for all to choose their path.
now you have to invade another country to solve the problem
but keep al-qaeda members free
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"It could be a picture
It could be a medicine
it could be a bullet
depends on how you see it"
As we've seen, this scenario is impossible. No one will want to give up their arsenal and countries will always secretly develop weapons and deny they have them.
Look at Israel.... Officially, it has no weapons. unofficially, it has over 300 warheads.
South Africa has admitted that it developed nuclear weapons, but "destroyed" them .. Do you believe that ?
Its better to have let everyone have them...
Adil - wht goes around....and it has come to you bro. still not realising it!! I have no comments.
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
Brit - I meant am against everyone.. not that the those has it keeps and stops the new ones.
Thats the only way you can get rid opf the imminent danger it can cause.
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
M.A.D - Mutually Assured Destruction.
If you know that i can cause you harm, then you'll think twice about tangling with me.
Also, it is all too easy to say, "But they'll fall into the hands of the terrorists". This is just an excuse by the big powers to keep people on their side.
Look at post USSR. Supposedly, nuclear devices and nuclear material from ex soviet sattelites was going to flood the world and get into the hands of the terrorists.
Nothing so far :O)
Fortunately we call him "Smiling Buddha" like indians named it after their first Nuclear Test..
Danagerous minds think dangerously
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HE WHO DARES WINS
Thats how it can easily reach those moron extremists who are dieing for it now.
Adil - why not, why do u want every one to have it ? was
that reason you guys supporting Mr KHan for pilfering it eh?
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
Thanks Adil . I am against developing Nukes , either for civil or defence interests.
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
brit, I am with you 100%.
I am with you 0%.
ALL nations should have the right to develop nuclear capabilities both for civil or defence purposes.
better to start a campaign against the Nuclear Test , that was named "Smiling Buddha".
It doesn't, brit. It's a political decision and not a rational one.
CERN is a research facility looking into sub atomic particles and the theory of creation.
How would their work really benefit a terrorist group ?
so u want him , to improve ur poor nuclear technology???
No one is serious. the technology was pilfered to Iran by a spy scientist, who is living free without any probs even now in Pakitan., US also has no probs with that. all polirtics and double games.
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
Actually CERN is not a nuke research center. But they are trying to do the "Big Bang", and that would really be a bang if Osama Bin Laden would get hold of it.
Brit ..if he dream about it...its just a spark away...
yes maybe its kinda anticipatory arrest..but you cannot wait and watch till he does that...he is playing with nukes...not with a hand grenade!!
Brit - Ofcourse yes, why take a chance?
the conecrn was on the unstable countries who posses nuclear. This proves its not safe in any country and they do target them too.
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
He was not just "thinking" about it, brit, he had expressed a "desire". There is nothing wrong if you "think" about Chinese Dolls, but ...
You are correct, it's actions like this that will make employment for qualified Muslims harder.
What I find intriguing is the comment - " “He had expressed a wish or a desire to commit terrorist actions but had not materially prepared them,”
Does this mean that just thinking about commiting a crime makes you liable for arrest now ?
This will make life difficult of many innocent European Arab...Secret agents are really doing a good job by tracing them...
Many young scientist and highly qualified professionals are brainwashed by these Islamic militants in the name of Jihad..wish they could use their brain for better purposes..
WTF
I think the Africans (?) and the Muslims should build their own CERN (if they can), and then they can do what they want and arrest all 'non-believers' who attempt to get a job there!
to add to the negative impression.
Source:
- A study Conducted by FriedUnicorn - Vol I (September,1999)
a poor african scientist, working for a contractor.
Geneva's CERN is Europe's most guarded site of top nuclear research. This incident points out a great concern over the security of nuclear facilities employing personnel who, for their origin and or religion, could be "sensitive to islamist principles."
The arrest however,would be the most important step to discover the links of the terrorist organization in Europe.