Three extremists were found guilty in London Wednesday of involvement in a foiled 2006 plot to blow up passenger airliners flying between Britain and North America. The plot aimed to kill thousands of people by bombing at least seven transatlantic airliners flying between London Heathrow airport and the US and Canada using liquid explosives hidden in soft drinks bottles.
Its discovery led to strict new rules about carrying liquids on commercial planes. Adam Khatib, 22, was convicted of conspiracy to murder by plotting with ringleader Abdulla Ahmed Ali in the run-up to the attempted plot, after a trial at the high security Woolwich Crown Court in south-east London. Nabeel Hussain, 25, was found guilty of preparing for terrorism by meeting Ali twice and of possessing several items for use in terrorism, including a will and mobile phones.
Mohammed Shamin Uddin, 39, was convicted of possessing a CD likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism. He was cleared of preparing for terrorism and possessing a CD which could be used for a purpose connected with the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism. The three men, who are all from London, will be sentenced Thursday.
Ringleader Ali was jailed for at least 40 years in September for conspiracy to murder. Tanvir Hussain, 28, and Assad Sarwar, 29, were also convicted at the same time. The counter-terrorism operation to prevent the plot was the biggest ever in Britain, costing 35 million pounds (57 million dollars, 40 million euros).
The plan was to smuggle explosives made of hydrogen peroxide onto the planes in soft drink bottles. Refilled batteries would carry the chemical detonator, with the bombs set off using a charge from a light bulb filament. They would have been assembled and detonated in mid-air by a team of suicide bombers, causing untold damage. Police believe the design was thought up by a bombmaker with links to the al Qaeda network, who has never been identified.