W O R L D

Qaida bombmaker becomes America’s worst nightmare
Washington, May 9
Running a clandestine bomb factory in remote area in Yemen, a nondescript Saudi has emerged as the most potent threat to the US, making three bids in past three years to spread mayhem in the world's most powerful nation.

Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri

‘Double agent used to foil terror attack’
Washington, May 9
The suicide bomber dispatched by the terrorist leaders of the Yemen-based Al-Qaida in Arabian Peninsula to blow up a US plane was in fact a double agent who worked for the Saudi intelligence agency, a media report said.

Friend of India loses Indiana primary
Washington, May 9
Indiana Senator Richard Lugar, a known friend of India in the Congress who played a key role in passage of the civil nuclear deal during Bush Administration, has lost the primary Senate elections in his state.

Richard Lugar

With 3 more wins, Romney inches closer to nomination
Washington, May 9
Mitt Romney swept three Republican primaries in Indiana, North Carolina and West Virginia, moving closer to sealing the party nomination for November Presidential polls against incumbent Barack Obama.





Supporters of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney cheer in Michigan. — AFP 

UN Syria observer chief escapes blast 
Daraa, May 9
The head of a UN observer mission to Syria, Major General Robert Mood, escaped unharmed when a blast went off as his convoy entered a restive southern town today.


Wounded Syrian soldiers after a roadside bomb attack targeted their convoy in Daraa. — AFP

Qaida bombmaker becomes America’s worst nightmare
Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri has emerged as the biggest problem for CIA since the slaying of terror chief Osama bin Laden and has now become a major focus of America’s anti-terrorism efforts

Washington, May 9
Running a clandestine bomb factory in remote area in Yemen, a nondescript Saudi has emerged as the most potent threat to the US, making three bids in past three years to spread mayhem in the world's most powerful nation.

His explosive devices are becoming increasingly sophisticated and hard-to-detect for Americans counter-intelligence forces, who have now marked him as the nation's most wanted.

Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri has emerged as CIA's worst nightmare since the slaying of terror chief Osama bin Laden and has now become a major focus of America's anti-terrorism efforts, CNN reported quoting US intelligence officials.

Asiri, 30, who hails from middle class Saudi family, US intelligence agency say is the top bombmaker for Al-Qaida's Yemeni branch whom they now call 'Evil Genius'.

US officials have said Asiri built the bomb in the attempts to bring down a commercial flight near Detroit and two cargo planes headed for the US. His latest bomb, part of yesterday's foiled plot, appear to be the most sophisticated and a modification of his underwear bomb, which caused ripples in American law enforcement agencies.

With the death of Osama bin Laden, Asiri is a key reason that US officials consider Yemen's Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to be one of the most significant threats to the American homeland. "He is highly determined and fully committed to attack America," according to Arab security experts.

Over the past year, the AQAP has taken advantage of Yemen's political turmoil and seized large swaths of territory in the south. Yemen's government and the Obama administration have responded with aerial assaults and drone strikes, targeting Asiri and other top operatives of the AQAP.

Asiri built the "underwear" bomb worn by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab when he tried to blow up a Northwest Airlines flight headed to Detroit on Christmas Day in 2009. A year later, Asiri built the printer-cartridge bombs that Al-Qaida placed on Fedex and UPS planes destined for Chicago.

If it were not for a technical problem (Abdulmutallab's device failed to detonate), Asiri would have succeeded in staging a catastrophic disaster in American skies.

"Ibrahim al-Asiri is the one who enabled the operations of Al-Qaida in Yemen to move from local attacks to international ones," said Said Obaid, the Yemeni author of a book about AQAP. — PTI

The ‘Evil Genius’

Asiri, 30, hails from a middle class Saudi family. The US intelligence agency says 
he is the top bombmaker for Al-Qaida's Yemeni branch

According to US officials, Asiri built the bomb in attempts to bring down a commercial flight near Detroit and two cargo planes headed for the US

His latest bomb appear to be the most sophisticated and a modification of his underwear bomb, which caused ripples in US law enforcement agencies

‘Double agent used to foil terror attack’

Washington, May 9
The suicide bomber dispatched by the terrorist leaders of the Yemen-based Al-Qaida in Arabian Peninsula to blow up a US plane was in fact a double agent who worked for the Saudi intelligence agency, a media report said.

The plot, unearthed last month, was made public on Monday after the FBI said the bomb was similar to that of the underwear bomber of 2009, but was a bit more sophisticated and technically advanced.

"In an extraordinary intelligence coup, the double agent left Yemen last month, traveling by way of the United Arab Emirates, and delivered both the innovative bomb designed for his aviation attack and inside information on the group's leaders, locations, methods and plans to Central Intelligence Agency, Saudi intelligence and allied foreign intelligence agencies," The New York Times reported.

In an interview, John Brennan, chief counter-terrorism adviser to US President, said it took very close cooperation with international partners to unearth this plot. — PTI

Friend of India loses Indiana primary

Washington, May 9
Indiana Senator Richard Lugar, a known friend of India in the Congress who played a key role in passage of the civil nuclear deal during Bush Administration, has lost the primary Senate elections in his state.

Lugar, a six-term Senator, lost to Indiana state Treasurer Richard Mourdock. His defeat yesterday brought an end to the political career of one of the longest serving Republican Senator spanning more than three and half decades. He was the main target for national conservative groups, including the fiscally conservative Club for Growth, the National Rifle Association and the Tea Party-affiliated FreedomWorks, who spent more than $3 million in advertisement against him.

He was also the architect of the Kerry-Lugar-Berman bill that assured Pakistan more than $7.5 billion in US aid to Pakistan in five years. — PTI

With 3 more wins, Romney inches closer to nomination

Washington, May 9
Mitt Romney swept three Republican primaries in Indiana, North Carolina and West Virginia, moving closer to sealing the party nomination for November Presidential polls against incumbent Barack Obama.

After his latest victories, the former Massachusetts Governor has 934 of the 1,144 delegates needed to clinch the nomination, according to CBS News estimates.

Romney faced no serious opposition in yesterday’s primaries in Indiana, North Carolina and West Virginia.

He spent the day campaigning in Michigan, where he attacked Obama as an “old-school liberal” and claimed that the President’s policies would take the country backward.

In the absence of serious competition, Romney was able to collect the bulk of the 100 delegates at stake in yesterday’s primaries.

The Republican party will officially nominate its candidate for the Presidential elections in its convention in Tampa, Florida at the end of August. Romney’s former rivals Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum have already dropped their bid for the presidency. Santorum endorsed Romney late Monday night in an email to supporters.

Now, Ron Paul, who has so far secured an estimated 92 delegates, remains in the Republican race.

During an interview to Fox News, Romney sought to portray himself as an underdog against the President, saying: “We’re gonna have to fight very, very hard to break through the clutter of the charges and the attacks and the efforts to dissuade people from looking at his record.” Obama and his potential Republican rival are expected to witness a tight contest, according to latest opinion polls.

In a Gallup/USA Today poll of 12 swing states released this week, Obama edged out Romney 47 per cent to 45 per cent.

The result is within the poll’s four-point margin of error and closer than Gallup’s last swing state poll from March, when Obama held a nine-point lead. — PTI 

UN Syria observer chief escapes blast 

Daraa, May 9
The head of a UN observer mission to Syria, Major General Robert Mood, escaped unharmed when a blast went off as his convoy entered a restive southern town today.

The explosion in Daraa wounded six Syrian soldiers, including an officer, who were escorting the UN convoy, while 12 other monitors travelling with the Norwegian general were uninjured in the attack, said an AFP photographer. The spokesman for the UN mission, Neeraj Singh, was also in the convoy, he said, adding that he too was unhurt.

The blast, caused by an explosive device planted in the ground, went off after four UN vehicles passed the entrance to Daraa safely, the photographer said.

The flashpoint town of Daraa is considered the cradle of an uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad that began 14 months ago.

About 50 UN observers are currently in Syria to monitor a shaky UN-backed truce that went into effect April 12, as part of a six-point peace deal drawn up by UN and Arab League envoy Kofi Annan. — AFP