British authorities said Thursday they had thwarted a terrorist plot to simultaneously blow up several aircraft heading to the U.S. using explosives smuggled in carry-on luggage. British Airways canceled all flights between London’s Heathrow airport and all points in Britain, Europe and Libya for the day.
Britain’s Home Secretary John Reid said 21 people had been arrested in London, its suburbs and in Birmingham, including the alleged “main players” in the plot.
And where’s Waldo? Who are these terrorists?
Euphemistically found in paragraph ten:
The suspects were “homegrown,” though it was not immediately clear if they were all British citizens, said a police official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case. Police were working closely with the South Asian community, the official said.
And anonymously in paragraph 17:
A senior U.S. counterterrorism official said authorities believe dozens of people “” possibly as many as 50 “” were involved in the plot, which “had a footprint to al-Qaida back to it.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.