Nearly 300 passengers and crew members of Northwest Airlines flight 253 came within a heartbeat of being incinerated on Christmas Day because 23-year-old Nigerian Jihadist Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab somehow smuggled explosives past sophisticated anti-terrorist security measures in Europe. That the passengers and crew members survived is because of Jasper Schuringa, a brave man from Amsterdam who prevented Abdulmutallab from detonating a bomb sewn into his underwear. The device was made of pentaerythritol tetranitrate, an explosive that has been around since before World War I. Three more factors in this near-tragedy deserve particular attention:
First, President Obama should demand the resignation of Secretary Janet Napolitano and fire her if she refuses to resign. It is clear from her comment that “the system worked” that Napolitano lacks the first clue about what is required to ensure safe commercial airline travel in an era defined by the war on terrorism. The system failed because an individual with known terrorist links successfully smuggled explosives on board a loaded commercial jet bound for the U.S. He did so by defeating screening measures in Amsterdam that mirror those used elsewhere in Europe and across the U.S.
Second, U.S. intelligence authorities have known about Abdulmutallab for at least two years, which puts his initial appearance on the radar screen during the Bush administration. But members of the current administration ought not point fingers because they were warned six months ago about Abdulmutallab’s Jihadist views. That warning came from his father, Umar Faroul Abdulmutallab, who spoke to U.S. embassy officials in Lagos, Nigeria. Despite these red flags, the younger Abdulmutallab was issued a U.S. visa. There should be a full, public investigation by an independent panel of how and why Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s department could be so inept. The investigation should also determine why screening methods implemented by Napolitano’s department failed to detect the presence of a well-known explosive substance.
Third and most important, U.S. officials have now been twice fooled by terrorists preparing and conducting attacks while hiding in plain sight. Just as Abdulmutallab’s radical views were known, so were those of U.S. Army Maj. Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people at Fort Hood earlier this year. This suggests that there has been a breakdown in the U.S. intelligence network. But there is an even more worrisome possible explanation here — a lessening of focus by intelligence officials who fear being prosecuted for doing whatever is necessary to protect the American people. They can hardly be blamed when the same administration that threatens them with prosecution gives Khalid Sheikh Mohammed a civil trial in New York City, as if he is just another common criminal instead of the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks.
