Al-Qaeda Groups Seek Nuclear Material for U.K. Attack (Update1)
By Robin Stringer
Nov. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Al-Qaeda groups are trying to obtain nuclear, chemical and biological material to use in terrorist attacks in the U.K., the Foreign Office in London said.
``Absolutely, we believe these organizations are trying to get hold of this material,'' the Foreign Office said in a statement read by a spokesman today.
The announcement follows a warning from the head of the U.K.'s domestic intelligence service, MI5, that the country faces as many as 30 terrorist plots. MI5 Director General Eliza Manningham-Buller, who rarely speaks in public, said her agency is investigating 200 networks comprising 1,600 individuals.
``Today we see the use of home-made improvised explosive devices but I suggest tomorrow's threat will include the use of chemical, bacteriological agents, radioactive materials and even nuclear technology,'' Manningham-Buller said in a Nov. 10 address to academics in London.
Dhiren Barot, a 34-year-old convert to Islam, was sentenced on Nov. 7 in London to 40 years in prison for plotting attacks in the U.S. and the U.K. Barot, the first British Muslim to be sentenced for attempting to commit mass murder through acts of terrorism, was accused of conspiring with al-Qaeda figures to detonate a radioactive ``dirty bomb'' in the U.K.
Other Suspects
More than 60 other suspects are on trial or awaiting trial in the U.K. on terrorism charges that include allegations of plots to detonate a massive fertilizer bomb and to attack trans- Atlantic airliners.
The Foreign Office said it will focus on the four ``Ps'' of its ``Contest'' program to reduce the risk posed by international terrorism: prevent the radicalization of young Muslims; pursue terrorists; prepare to deal with the aftermath of any attack; and protect buildings and people at home and overseas.
``We hope to use the first two to prevent the last two,'' the Foreign Office said in the statement. The program, which started last year, is led by the Cabinet Office.
Many U.K. terrorism plots were linked to al-Qaeda in Pakistan, Manningham-Buller said. Four Muslim suicide bombers killed 52 people in attacks on three subway trains and a bus in London on July 7, 2005. Three of the bombers were British-born of Pakistani origin, the fourth a Muslim convert of Jamaican origin.
The Foreign Office said it isn't blaming other countries for not doing enough to combat extremists.
``We are not pointing the finger of blame at anyone, we're trying to extend the finger of help,'' the Foreign Office said.
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