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Terror in the Skies, Again?

(WomensWallStreet) Annie Jacobsen - Islamic militants have conducted dry runs of a devastating new style of bombing on aircraft flying to Europe, intelligence sources believe. The tactics, which aim to evade aviation security systems by placing only components of explosive devices on passenger jets, allowing militants to assemble them in the air, have been tried out on planes flying between the Middle East, North Africa, and Western Europe, security sources say. On June 29, 2004, I flew on Northwest Airlines flight #327 from Detroit to Los Angeles, together with 14 Middle Eastern men from Syria between the ages of 20 and 50. What I experienced during that flight has caused me to question whether the U.S. can realistically uphold the civil liberties of every individual, even non-citizens, and protect its citizens from terrorist threats. After seeing the men board separately and then act as a group, watching their unusual glances, observing their bizarre bathroom activities, watching them congregate in small groups, knowing that the flight attendants and the pilots were seriously concerned, and now knowing that federal air marshals were on board, I was officially terrified.
2004-07-21 00:00:00
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