The Latest from National Terror Alert Response Center

Japan Firm Says Nuke Shelter Sales Up Posted: 06 Apr 2009 10:09 PM PDT A retailer of nuclear fallout shelters in Japan said Monday that sales soared in the lead-up to North Korea’s rocket launch as jittery residents took their safety into their own hands. Osaka-based Shelter Co said it received 12 orders in just two months ahead of Sunday’s launch — more than double the number it usually sells in an entire year. Pyongyang said the rocket it launched over Japan on Sunday carried a satellite into orbit, but Washington, Tokyo and Seoul believe the launch was a cover for a test of an intercontinental ballistic missile. Most orders for the Swiss-made 2.8 million yen (28,000 dollar) “household nuclear shelters” came from northwestern Akita and Iwate prefectures, located under the rocket’s path, said company president Seiichiro Nishimoto. “This is a record in the 30 years I’ve been in this business,” he told AFP, adding that he had also received about 150 enquiries. “Japanese want to be prepared. I expect the number of orders to increase.” Other retailers said they saw no dramatic rise in orders. “Japanese people are not that worried about North Korea. They are watching the situation calmly,” said Nobuko Oribe, an executive of Oribe Seiki Seisakusho, a fallout shelter manufacturer based in Kobe city. Japan, despite being the only country to have suffered atomic attacks, has very few nuclear shelters. This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information. Share this post

al Qaeda-Taliban Combo Has Chemical Weapon Formula Posted: 06 Apr 2009 09:55 PM PDT The al-Qaida-Taliban combo plans to use parts of the Middle East as launch pads for attacks against the west. Not only so, the groups have also developed some expertise in making bio-chemical weapons, NWFP police chief Malik Navid told a Pakistan National Assembly’s standing committee. Navid warned that the Pakistan government needed to urgently focus on containing militancy as it spread from its bases. “Taliban’s philosophy is to create pockets everywhere,” he said, adding that jihadi groups were moving through southern Punjab and eventually aimed to reach the financial hub of Karachi. The frank assessment of the police official serves to confirm concerns about whether Pakistan and its military complex in particular was prepared to clearly acknowledge the threat posed by jihadists given the army and ISI see Taliban as allies in ensuring a “friendly” dispensation in Afghanistan while also feeding the jihad in Jammu and Kashmir. The army’s sporadic efforts to roll back jihadis lacked conviction and have predictably shown poor results. Navid’s testimony also points to the virtual merger of al-Qaida with Taliban, with the latter being both part of the core and the major striking arm. Indian intelligence assessments see anti-India groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba being very much a part of this conglomerate. via ‘Qaida-Taliban combo has chemical weapon formula’ - South Asia - World - The Times of India. This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information. Share this post

F-16’s Scrambled - Stolen Canadian Plane Lands In Missouri Posted: 06 Apr 2009 08:25 PM PDT Police captured the pilot of a stolen Canadian plane late Monday night, ending a bizarre pursuit that began in Thunder Bay, Ont., and ended in a small Missouri town. The pilot took a single-engine Cessna 172 from a Thunder Bay aviation school and soon crossed into U.S. airspace. Authorities scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to track the aircraft as it made its way over Wisconsin and Illinois. Nearly eight hours later, at about 10 p.m. ET, the pilot landed on a dirt road in the southern Missouri town of Ellsinore and fled on foot. Officials with the Federal Bureau of Investigation then arrested 31-year-old suspect Yavuz Burke, a native of Turkey who became a Canadian citizen last year. He was formerly known as Adam Leon. Earlier, the North American Aerospace Defense Command had scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to track the plane. Lt.-Cmdr. Gary Ross, a spokesperson for NORAD, said the pilot did not respond to radio calls from the jets or the FAA. He also said the pilot refused to acknowledge the nonverbal communications from the F-16 jets to follow them. It appears the plane only landed as it came close to running out of fuel. The plane was reported stolen at about 2:30 p.m. ET and was spotted flying erratically. At about 5 p.m., the state capital building in Madison, Wis., was evacuated before the plane passed near the region. Police cars cordoned off the streets around the building and officers told people to move away from the area. The small plane belongs to Confederation College’s aviation program and was taken off from the Thunder Bay International Airport. According to local radio, someone jumped the fence and took off on an unauthorized flight. City police are at the scene at the college’s hangar. Police spokesperson Chris Adams says officers have little to go on at the time. According to Cessna’s website, the Cessna 172 Skyhawk is world’s most flown airplane. It has a maximum cruise speed of 233 kilometres an hour and a range of 1,130 km. Source This story comes to us via Homeland Security - National Terror Alert. National Terror Alert is America's trusted source for homeland security news and information. Share this post

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