But they were only in the planning stages ...

Three men have been arrested and one still being sought in connection with a plot to blow up JKF International Airport. The plan was to set off explosives in a fuel line that runs through residential neighborhoods to JFK. The pipeline runs from Linden, New Jersey to JFK. Not just any fuel, jet fuel.

One of the terrorists said this would be like killing John F. Kennedy twice. Well, isn't that just precious!

Arrested:

Russell Defreitas, a U.S. citizen native to Guyana, former JFK employee, in custody in Brooklyn.

Abdul Kadir of Guyana, a former member of Parliament in Guyana and Kareem Ibrahim of Trinidad, in custody in Trinidad.

Wanted: Abdel Nur, of Guyana. And what religion were they??? Muslim.

Muslims make up about 9 percent of the former Dutch and British colony's 770,000 population, mostly from the Sunni sect.

The plot never got past the planning stages. It posed no threat to air safety or the public, the FBI said Saturday.

From NPR:

Those arrested include a U.S. citizen; a second U.S. citizen who is a naturalized citizen from Guyana; and one Trinidadian. Authorities are also looking for one more person, who is from Guyana.

Remember that Adnan el Shukrijumah, thought to be the next Mohammad Atta and head of a terrorist cell intent on attacking America with suitcase nukes ... is Arab Guyanese. (read more here and here)

They were reportedly NOT associated with al-Qaeda but Jamaat-e-Islamia. Jamaat-el Islamia originated in Pakistan, had connections to Hamas and believes in "the spirit of jihad and martyrdom." Jamaat al-Muslimeen

The Jamaat al Muslimeen (from Arabic جماعة المسلمين) is a Muslim organisation within the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago with a membership of predominantly Afro-Trinidadians. [snip]

It was the organisation's leader, Imam Yasin Abu Bakr, who led members of the Jamaat in an attempted coup d'état against the elected Government of Trinidad and Tobago in July 1990.

What exactly defines "homegrown" when referring to terror plots? One of these men, Russell Defreitas, was an American citizen, another was a naturalized citizen, the other two were not American. How did they get here? Why were they here? Were they here legally? Many questions still remain.

The arrests mark the latest in a series of alleged homegrown terrorism plots targeting high-profile American landmarks.

A year ago, seven men were arrested in what officials called the early stages of a plot to blow up the Sears Tower in Chicago and destroy FBI offices and other buildings.

A month later, authorities broke up a plot to bomb underwater New York City train tunnels to flood lower Manhattan.

And six people were arrested a month ago in an alleged plot to unleash a bloody rampage on Fort Dix in New Jersey. (Courier News)

Guyana's next door neighbor is Venezuela, they are just south of Venezuela's friend Cuba.

And as some will stress, these terrorists did not have explosives yet. The plan was only in the planning stages. Seems to me this is the best time to stop a terrorist plot, BEFORE they are fully capable of carrying out their plans.

_______________________________________________________________
The HILL Chronicles, BREAKING: Terror Plot on JFK foiled

Political Pistachio has good news from the doctors about his son's cancer. Also don't miss the Blog Talk Radio broadcast that is on Good News today.

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Woman Honor Thyself, Dips OpenTrackback Weekend..yum.

Comments

[MR]

Here is my take on this:
http://www.mujahideenryder.net/2007/06/04/thoughts-on-the-jfk-terror-plot/

[Stormwarning]

Dear Budge. I beg to differ with you. The fact that these "wannabees" didn't make it happen doesn't mean that others will not. The fact is that the JFK plot shows that terrorism is percolating in the Western Hemisphere, and its also close to our shores in the Caribbean.

Yes, relax and live our lives...but no, terrorism in the U.S. is not a thing of the past.

No one who I know or work with believes that its gone forever.

[Budge]

relax
there'll be no more major terrorist assaults in the u.s.
potential "terrorists" keep spilling the beans on themselves before their hairbrained plots get off the ground
they don't have the discipline to keep their mouths shut long enough to assemble a firecracker
relax and live your lives

[Debbie]

Mad Cow, that's exactly what I'm talking about. Steve Centanni of all people, who was kept by Muslim terrorists and almost lost his head, literally.

ABC started with "Authorities CLAIM to have disrupted a terror cell..."

Others are saying they "didn't have the means or skills" to carry this off. How do they know?

Do they want to wait until they actually blow up NJ and NY?

[mad_cow]

Steve Centanni reporting on Fox seemed determined to downplay the threat. I can't quote him exactly, but he went out of his way to point out the terrorists did not have the means to carry out the attack. Well as you said Debbie, it was in the planning stage. Maybe the means were to come later??

How about saying they didn't have the means yet? And thanks to the FBI they never will.

[Stormwarning]

What? AC: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Russell+Defreitas&btnG=Google+Search

[A.C. McCloud]

I have a high curiosity about Mr. Russell Defreitas, former JFK employee. Do either of you have a bio on this fellow?

[Debbie]

Stormwarning, "who financed it" is the question of the day. They must have financing from someone. I don't have a copy of the indictments yet, but look forward to reading them.

[Stormwarning]

To start with, my understanding is that the plot was initially uncovered in January 2006. At least two are Muslims, but as of earlier this afternoon, the FBI's position is that it was not related to al Qaeda (TBD).

The worst part of this plot though is that the plan to blow up the fuel depots would have been catastrophic if successful as the fuel lines run underneath densely populated sections of Queens surrounding the airport.

I wouldn't go stressing over religions at this point. I'd be happy that the FBI was ontop of the situation. And if aQ wasn't involved in any way, then who did? Who financed it?

As for "home grown" terrorism...you and I know that I've written on my blog a nuber of times that there are close parallels between gangs and terrorists.