Attempted attack on Glasgow International Airport
In the attempted attack on Glasgow International Airport on June 30, 2007, almost two years after the suicide attacks on July 7, 2005 in London , the Indian Kafeel Ahmed and the Iraqi Bilal Abdullah tried their Jeep Cherokee into the main terminal of the Scottish city's airport Glasgow to drive.
This incident occurred just one day after the foiled car bomb attacks by Islamist terrorists in the British capital, London .
procedure
On Saturday, June 30, 2007 at 3:15 p.m. UK time ( CEST −1), a burning SUV sped into the main terminal of the airport. The vehicle was stopped by bollards at the entrance to the central check-in hall. The subsequent explosion of the vehicle destroyed the glass doors of the terminal and caused a fire in the entrance area that could only be extinguished after about three hours. After the vehicle came to a halt, there was a scuffle between the perpetrators and the police . One of the terrorists , Kafeel Ahmed, who was behind the wheel of the off-road vehicle, caught fire and died from serious burn injuries about a month later. The attack caused panic among the waiting travelers when hundreds fled the airport. The airport has been completely evacuated and all flights have been canceled. Around 2,500 passengers were affected by this measure.
Casualty numbers
Five passers-by were injured in the attempted attack in Glasgow and one of the two assassins was admitted to the Royal Alexandra Hospital with severe burns. The police announced on August 2, 2007 that he had died of these injuries.
Reactions
After the failed attacks in London and the attack in Glasgow, streets were blocked off over the course of the weekend because of suspicious parcels and vehicles. In addition, on Monday, July 2nd, 2007, two vehicles were detonated in a controlled manner by the police near the Royal Alexandra Hospital in the nearby city of Paisley . Liverpool Airport was also briefly evacuated. In all cases, however, it was a question of false alarms .
On the evening of June 30, 2007, the British government critically declared the highest terror warning level . The security measures at all UK airports and train stations were then increased. Due to the events in England and Scotland , the USA had also tightened its security measures at some airports.
Connections
On June 29, 2007, one day before the attack in Glasgow, the British police were able to thwart a double attack with car bombs in London: at 1:00 a.m., the police were alerted when a car parked near Piccadilly Circus was suspect Smoke came out. In the car parked in front of the Tiger Tiger nightclub on Haymarket Street, officers discovered several gas bottles, petrol and nails. Next to it was a cell phone prepared as a detonator. A few hours later, at 3:00 p.m., police cordoned off Park Lane near Hyde Park because of a second suspicious car. This vehicle had recently been towed for no parking near Haymarket. Since gas escaped from the car, the police examined this vehicle with the help of a robot and at around 10:00 p.m. Scotland Yard confirmed that this was also a bomb. Both cars were Mercedes sedans stocked with gas bottles, gasoline, and nails scattered on the floor. The cell phones, which were intended as detonators, were called twice after they had already been separated from the bombs. In addition, technical problems with remote ignition by mobile phone prevented the explosions.
According to the police, there is a clear connection between the foiled terrorist attacks in London and the attack in Glasgow: the terrorists responsible for the attempted attack in Glasgow are also responsible for the foiled car bomb attacks in London. There were flammable materials and gas bottles in all three vehicles. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown assumes that al-Qaeda or a related organization is behind the acts .
Background and investigation
Two weeks before the failed attacks in the British capital, London nightclubs were warned by the authorities of possible car bomb attacks. According to unconfirmed media reports, the following message appeared in the Internet discussion forum El Hesbah before the attempted attack : "Today I say: Rejoice, by Allah, London is to be bombed." According to The Times and the US, a man named Abu Osama al-Hazeen is believed to be -Sender CBS as the author of the communication. The report also addresses the outrage among Muslims over the accolade of the author Salman Rushdie .
Shortly after the attack in Glasgow, five other terror suspects, most of whom are of foreign origin, were arrested in addition to the two attackers. The investigators assume that they belonged to a terrorist cell connected to the al-Qaida network. In Australia, an eighth suspect was arrested in connection with the events in Britain . Three of the suspects are doctors.
Legal proceedings
Sabeel Ahmed, the brother of the killed Glasgow assassin Kafeel, was sentenced to 18 months in prison a good eight months after the failed attacks. According to the judiciary, the doctor from Bangalore , India , who works in the north-west of England, withheld important information from the police. In December 2008, the Iraqi Bilal Abdullah was sentenced to two life imprisonment; The 29-year-old, whom the judge called a “religious extremist and fanatic”, has to be imprisoned for at least 32 years for “conspiracy in the June 2007 attacks”.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Glasgow Airport attack this. In: BBC News. August 3, 2007, accessed January 7, 2016 .
- ↑ Almost escaped the disaster. In: stern. July 1, 2007, accessed January 7, 2016 .
- ↑ Brother of the Glasgow bomber sentenced to 18 months in prison. In: 123recht.net. April 11, 2008, archived from the original on February 21, 2013 ; accessed on January 7, 2016 .
- ↑ Iraqis have to be detained for 32 years for attempted attacks. In: Spiegel Online. December 17, 2008, accessed January 7, 2016 .
Coordinates: 55 ° 51 '51.4 " N , 4 ° 25' 54.8" W.