Terrerist attack foiled

The man was attempting to destroy Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam with an explosive device, said Peter King of New York, the top Republican on the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security. White House officials said President Barack Obama was treating yesterday's incident as an attempted terrorist attack. The New York Times named the suspect as a 23-year-old Nigerian, Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab.

Obama called for “all appropriate measures to be taken to increase security” after the suspected attack, the White House said in a statement. The Department of Homeland Security said passengers may notice additional screening. Security at airports in Asia, Australia, Canada, continental Europe and the UK was increased today, and a European Commission statement said the authorities are in contact with Dutch and U.S. officials.

The incident on the flight from Schiphol Airport “definitely appears to be al-Qaeda-related,” King said in an interview. “This was not a firecracker. This was for real.” The senior Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, Representative Pete Hoekstra, said he had information the suspect may have had contact with a radical imam based in Yemen with ties to the suspected shooter in the Fort Hood killings in Texas.

Suspect Held

The suspect, who was taken into custody in Detroit, told authorities that the device was acquired in Yemen along with instructions on when it was to be used, CNN reported, citing a federal security bulletin. He was taken to a hospital to be treated for burns, the cable news network said. The fire from the explosion was large enough to require an extinguisher, CNN said, citing interviews with passengers.

The suspect is an engineering student at University College London, ABC News reported, citing federal documents. He was traveling from Nigeria to the U.S. for a religious seminar, according to his entry visa, which was issued June 16, 2008, and was valid through next June 12, ABC reported.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation in Detroit is leading the probe, said spokeswoman Sandra Berchtold, a review that includes identifying the material used by the suspect.

Susan Elliott, a spokeswoman for Northwest parent Delta Air Lines Inc., said earlier yesterday that the suspect had firecrackers.

Awlaki, Hasan

“The suspicion is also that” the bombing suspect “had contact with al Awlaki,” Hoekstra said in an interview. “The belief is this is a stronger connection with al Awlaki” than Hasan had.

The suspect may have been in a government law enforcement- intelligence database, the New York Times reported, citing a federal counterterrorism official who asked not to be identified.

Hoekstra said the Obama administration hasn't done enough to inform Congress about the al Awlaki-Hasan contacts and wanted to ensure the same didn't happen in this case.

Yemeni warplanes may have killed al Awlaki during a strike, a spokeswoman for that country's government said Dec. 24. If the investigation confirms the al Awlaki connection, the lawmaker said that it may show the Yemen branch of al-Qaida is taking a lead in attacks on the West.

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