London Times: Terror Suspects Face Xtra ?s (Khan outing consequences)

[DeepModem Mom]

Terror suspects face extra questions
By Daniel McGrory and Zahid Hussain in Islamabad

....Counter-terror sources in Britain and Pakistan told The Times that a security leak in the US caused a serious setback in efforts to round up the al-Qaeda cell that allegedly planned a wave of attacks. It was said that undercover operations were underway when a US official revealed how a computer expert in Pakistan, Mohammed Naaem Noor Khan, was found with details on his laptop of targets in Washington, New York and Newark, New Jersey.

The 25-year-old militant, a frequent visitor to Britain, also had details of the layout of roads, fuel farms and terminal buildings at Heathrow.

Security chiefs in Islamabad were secretly using Mr Khan in a “sting” operation to send e-mail messages to al-Qaeda agents to tempt them to break cover. Scotland Yard had a number of young militants under surveillance but Washington’s decision to publicise the security scare allowed a number of suspects to flee.

One security source told The Times: “This could have been so much more successful had we kept Mr Khan’s arrest, and the capture of others, a secret for a little time longer. We had good leads on how al-Qaeda operatives in Pakistan were linked to militants in the UK and US.”

Mr Khan recently stayed with relatives in Reading, Berkshire, and is said to have been co-operating with police by revealing names of those who allegedly worked on reconnaissance missions with him, including a British-born taxi driver, Abu Issa al-Hindi.


http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1211143,00.html