Jordan AQ Terror plot foiled

Al Qaeda Terror Plot' Foiled By Jordan

Eleven men are arrested for allegedly planning to attack shopping malls and Western diplomatic missions in the country.


Jordanian authorities have foiled an al Qaeda plot targeting shopping malls and Western diplomats, according to reports.

Sameeh Maaytah, a spokesman for the Jordanian government, said 11 suspected militants were in police custody.

State news agency Petra said they were planning a wave of attacks on diplomatic missions, hotels and other key sites using bombs, guns and mortars.

Mr Maaytah said the men - who are all Jordanian citizens - had brought arms into Jordan from neighbouring Syria to use in the alleged plot.

He added that al Qaeda operatives based in Iraq have been assisting the suspects with the manufacture of explosives.

The suspects were arrested over the past few days by Jordanian intelligence agents, he said.


Authorities said there were several possible targets in capital Amman

A judicial source told AFP that the case had been referred to the prosecutor of the state security court - a military tribunal - who has begun questioning "11 Jordanian nationals from Salafist movements".

"They will face two charges: conspiracy to carry out terrorist acts and possession of explosives," said the source who declined to be named. The charges carry the death penalty.

The group scouted possible targets in Amman, experimented with explosives after getting hold of raw materials to make bombs, and had begun selecting possible suicide bomb candidates, Petra said.

Among their alleged plans were attacks on two malls as well as a major attack in the upmarket Abdoun neighbourhood in western Amman.

Jordan is a key US ally and is one of the safest countries in the Middle East. However, it has seen al Qaeda-linked violence before.

In 2005, triple suicide bomb attacks at luxury hotels in the capital Amman killed 60 people.

Sunday's announcement that attacks have been foiled comes days after several reports that Jordanian authorities have arrested jihadists in recent months who cross into Syria to join the anti-regime armed insurgency there.

Thanks for the intel.