US, Europe face specter of Mumbai-style attack
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WASHINGTON — A possible terror plot against European cities has confirmed longstanding fears among Western security services that al-Qaeda and its allies could try to recreate the 2008 onslaught on Mumbai.
European and US security officials, citing recent intelligence, say that al-Qaeda may be planning Mumbai-style attacks with heavily-armed gunmen, a tactic that inflicts mass carnage and terror without the risks associated with bomb-making.
“Compared to trying to smuggle explosives on to an airplane, this is much easier. You just drive to the target, get out and start acting,” Bruce Riedel, a former CIA officer, told AFP.
“It’s a relatively simple idea. You get a handful of terrorists willing to commit mass murder and suicide and let them loose in an urban environment,” said Riedel, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who has advised President Barack Obama..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20101006com3.html
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