Have the US Media mentioned this.......?

[Englishlady]

As I am sure some of you are aware we had major problems with Terrorist's of late and 3 of the London suicide Bombers lived just 8 miles from my house !!( we are 200 miles from London, where they actually set off the bombs).

Anyway, it seems we have a lot of Home grown dissafected and unhappy Asian youths here and they are very vulnerable to being brainwashed by fanatics

Our Newspaper said there is credible inteligence to suggest that Terrorists may be planning further attacks both in the UK ( maybe London) and the USA ( no specific locations mentioned), on or around 11 September this year.

They went on to suggest that this may take the form of Hi-jacked Petrol tankers, being driven into their targets to create a huge incendiary bomb

Now, apart from giving the wrong people ideas ( by printing this) I don't see how it would be possible to stop this from happening, given that these people don't fear death.

I was suprised that no one was shocked when I mentioned our Gas prices are $6.58 a Gallon ( at present exchange rates), or maybe, it doesn't worry you, because that is over here not there?

But I do know that often you don't get the full story about what is happening around the world that may affect you, ( this is from my American relatives and from a number of old American friends who have a great interest in World events).

This may be the choice of the Media moguls or maybe the Government has decided that things like this shouldn't be published, I DON'T KNOW.

So, that said, I have a couple of questions I want to ask my friends here at FV:

Have you heard that this may be a possibility?and was it in the papers or from the TV?

Would what you had/have been told ( ie. the above) make you do anything different or change your routines on or around the Anniversary of 11 September?

I will be making sure both cars are full of fuel, and come pay-day ( this Wednesday) our next trip to the Supermarket will see maybe a few more tinned goods, than I usually get ~ just in case.

But I don't see the point of panic buying anything.

But if I can avoid shopping, for a while, I will take that opportunity.


This is not mean to offend any one, so please don't bite me! I am curious as to what is being reported in the US at present as, having a "debate" with relatives always descends into a Political argument when I try to ask an innocent question ..........

Karen

[Missy]

I haven't heard anything about it at all. but i guess the DH has been monopolizing the tv lately too.

[nodmicks]

Karen,
Nope, I haven't hear 1 single word about this in the US. It's good to know though just in case.
I know after reading this though I will keep my eayes and ear open.

[nodmicks]

English Lady~ if you happen to be able to show online link to any articles I'd be very interested in reading them.
I just told Dh about this thread. Looks like 9/11 is a sunday so the kids will be home butDh will be out in his semi. Glad were not near a refinery.

[hollyhill]

I am in Canada and I haven't heard anything either. Sept. 11 is my Dd 14th birthday party this year. They will be camping in the backyard and my biggest worry is blackbears!

Please keep us posted if you hear any more.

[jlxian]

Englishlady --- you are so correct we don't get "all the news" from the US media -- tv and newspaper. I frequent many many websites to try to glean as much news as possible. And even then I know I don't get anywhere close to the full story. I do check the BBC website a couple times a week.

I must have missed your post about the cost of gasoline in the UK --- wow. That is too much. The US is in for higher prices, that is for sure, and we will be slowly catching up to what the rest of the world has been paying for a long time.

I hadn't heard any of the specifics you mention about possible attacks around 9/11. I believe there are supposed to be some major memorial type gatherings in honor of 9/11 this year --- but sorry I don't know specifics. I tend to think of everything anymore in terms of "is this a potential target"? and I regret that horribly.

I'm also a little jaded about any announcements of potential strikes I'm afraid.

My viewpoints on the terrorists and how to "prepare" against further strikes could fill many pages, and would be more political than not, so I won't go into it here.

[QuilterMom]

Yes, I have heard this. A link was posted on a homesteading type board I read. I don't think I posted it here on FV, but I will see if I can dig it up and post the link in this thread.

I don't really know that this news in particular concerns me because quite simply it's out of my control. (I don't mean that to come off as flippant on my part.) The high gas prices do concern me though as they are already hurting us financially. I am very concerned about gas prices now that hurricane Katrina has made landfall and am anxious to hear how much has been damaged. I know that area is also a major port so I have a feeling the hurricane will add to the already increasing grocery prices as the high price of fuel is already doing here at my stores locally. I'm trying to stay stocked up as possible, but to keep within how we eat (organics). I'm not going to run out and stock up on a bunch of stuff we don't normally eat or use. I do like having a nice stockpile though in the event of any terrorist incident.

[QuilterMom]

Here it is.........

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...734148,00.html

The Sunday Times - Britain



August 14, 2005

US warns of new attacks on London
DAVID LEPPARD
Read the document



AMERICAN intelligence chiefs have warned that Al-Qaeda terrorists are plotting to drive hijacked fuel tankers into petrol stations in an effort to cause mass casualties in London and US cities in the next few weeks.



The leaked warning, contained in a bulletin issued by the US Department for Homeland Security last week, says the attacks aim to create catastrophic damage at about the time of the fourth anniversary of the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington.

The warning came as it emerged that the British Department for Transport had for the first time issued guidelines ordering a tightening of security around the UK road tanker fleet.

The US warning has been circulated among law enforcement agencies and fuel transport agencies. Although a preamble states that “no other intelligence exists to corroborate this specific threat�, the intelligence report is highly specific.

It says: “Al-Qaeda leaders plan to employ various types of fuel trucks as vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (VBIED) in an effort to cause mass casualties in the US (and London), prior to September 19. Attacks are planned specifically for New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. It is unclear whether the attacks will occur simultaneously or be spread over a period of time. The stated goal is the collapse of the US economy.�

The document goes on to suggest that the proposed methods will involve suicide drivers: “Some of the vehicles used will be hijacked. The type of vehicle may be anything from gasoline tanker trucks to trucks hauling oxygen and gas cylinders. Water trucks filled with gasoline or other highly combustible material may also be used. The detonation of the vehicles will be carried out by driving them into gas stations or ramming explosive-laden vehicles into the trucks carrying the fuel.�

The intelligence report says that the terrorist cells thought to be planning the attack will “execute the plan upon receipt of an order�. It goes on to speculate that the videotape released last week by Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda’s deputy leader, may have been meant as “the activation signal to the cells�. In the video al-Zawahiri warned that attacks would continue in Britain until it pulled out of Iraq.

The report says that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the alleged masterminds of the September 11 attacks, has told US interrogators that he had developed plans for targeting petrol stations. This was “due to their apparent vulnerability and the potential destructive force of a fuel-driven explosion�, it says.

The use of petrol tankers as mobile bombs has been a well-tested Al-Qaeda tactic in the Middle East. Terrorists in Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and Iraq have all used large fuel tankers against military and civilian targets.

A fuel tanker attack on the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996 killed 19 US servicemen. Four weeks ago terrorists exploded a fuel tanker in a busy market town 25 miles south of Baghdad killing nearly 100.

Although the specific threat of a tanker attack on London is thought to be new, Scotland Yard and MI5 have long feared that Al-Qaeda would try vehicle attacks on key targets in the capital.

Last year police disrupted an alleged plot to bomb a “soft target� — thought to be a Soho nightclub — with a truck bomb. More than half a ton of fertiliser, which can be used to make explosives, was recovered in a raid in north London.

Security sources say that fears about the use of fuel tankers has led to them being closely monitored when they enter the City of London.

Concrete security barriers have been placed in other key locations across the capital to stop vehicles packed with explosives reaching buildings such as parliament.

The Americans have previously been fearful that terrorists might use commercial vehicles for bomb attacks and warn that delivery vans could gain easy access to high-value economic targets. The FBI has also said that terrorists could use limousines packed with explosives to get near VIP targets.

The British Department for Transport issued new guidance on July 1 to prevent fuel tankers being hijacked and used as weapons. The security measures require carriers to be properly identified and transit sites to be made secure. All relevant staff are to be given security training. The measures apply to all dangerous goods transported by road or rail.



In California and Australia the authorities are introducing remote-controlled shut-down devices to stop any fuel tanker if it is hijacked. In Singapore the government has just begun putting tracking devices on petrol tankers to monitor their movements. Details of the latest intelligence warning were leaked to the American media last week, but no mention was made of the threat to London. The bulletin said the “stated goal is the collapse of the American economy�.

The disclosure of the warning has led to a disagreement among officials about the seriousness of the threat. Senior officials in Washington who were briefed on it last week said it was described as specific enough to warrant attention.

The FBI cautioned that the source of the information was not necessarily reliable. They said that the specific threat of a tanker attack to mark the anniversary of September 11 could not be verified.

This weekend British officials said they were unwilling to make any detailed comment on the warning. One government official said he knew of no specific intelligence warning of a fuel tanker attack in Britain: “It’s obviously a particular type of Al-Qaeda modus operandi used. But it hasn’t been used in Europe before.�

[jlxian]

Thanks for the link, Kim (btw is it homesteadingtoday.com you read? I like that site a lot.)

A question in general --- Was this news anywhere in the US press? (this is a UK news item) If the US is warning that it could happen in UK and US cities --- why is this not in our newspapers?

There are too many incongruities in the reporting of news in the US. Its almost like there are stories we are supposed to hear about (Michael Jackson, runaway bride and Nataly Holloway for example) and then there are those other ones.......

[Englishlady]

Thanks Kim! I thought it was in The Sunday Times I had read it but, wasn't sure about the date.

IMO The Sunday Times is generally, quite an intelligent paper, not given to hysteria and hype.

I am worried, but I don't think there is anything much we can do , on an individual personal level, except hope, pray and be vigilent.

Karen

[forestdale]

We had this story on our mainstream TV news a couple of weeks ago. I just did a search for Australian newpaper coverage, here it is and it's based on the Sunday Times article:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...5E2703,00.html

[QuilterMom]

No Jean, it's a smaller board than the one you mentioned called Our Country Haven. The ladies (and guys) there are really good about posting links and such to stories like that.

I haven't seen this mentioned on tv here. I rarely look at our local newspaper online, but I doubt it would have been on there anyway and I don't look at any of the larger papers online. I agree with Jean that we don't hear nearly enough of what we should in the U.S. and when we do I have my doubts as to what info is purposely left out for us not to hear.

[AmyBoz]

I have heard this sort of thing on CNN.com and MSNBC.com at various times. It's not necessarily new news, but is disturbing, nonetheless. I am not a fan of this administration, but the truth is I think that this nation is probably under attack more than we could even imagine, but that plots and schemes are stopped before the public even knows about them. And, for my own peace of mind, I'd prefer not to know about every possible threat on the nation.

Using gas or oil carriers is smart plan for the terrorists, but again, I think the governments know more than the papers do, and I would be highly surprised if anything large scale were to happen.

Suicide bombers are definitely the wild card because they are next to impossible to control, however, that is really only small scale. Even suicide bombers have a tough time pulling off something large scale, these days, post-9/11. And, security is at it's highest around 9/11 every year, and probably will be for the rest of our lives.

I think you made a good point when you say all we can do is hope, pray and be vigilant.

(I'm not sure if any of that made any sense, but I'm hoping there was a thread of sanity throughout.)

[jlxian]

Originally posted by QuilterMom
No Jean, it's a smaller board than the one you mentioned called Our Country Haven. The ladies (and guys) there are really good about posting links and such to stories like that.

Thanks Kim --- I did a quick look-see of the site and it looks very interesting. I'll do a more thorough check a little later today.

[Mamaw]

I had not read that article before now. Interesting... I also did not catch your post on gas prices. My heavens, that is high!! It is 2.65 in my area this weekend and frankly, I dont know when it will end. I think we all need to do what we can to conserve as much as possible. Personally, I have no choice as I really dont see how I can afford much more! LOL
As far as the attacks, I find the most difficult thing is feeling helpless. There is nothing I can do to stop this other than be alert and report anything out of the ordinary to the authorities. Other than that, I have a stockpile of groceries and will try to add to it in the next few weeks. I will also probably put in a few gallons of water, batteries for flashlights and the like, just in case. But I would do that in any case as winter is approaching and I like to be prepared for energy outages.