WASHINGTON — The government has warned airlines that
terrorists are considering surgically implanting explosives into people
in an attempt to circumvent screening procedures, according to U.S.
officials.
There is no indication of an immediate plot, but the
new information could lead to additional screening procedures at the
nation’s airports. Existing scanners would not necessarily detect bombs
implanted under a person’s skin, experts said.
While the information suggests such a threat would
come from overseas rather than domestic groups, federal officials are
ordering precautions both in the U.S. and abroad, the official said.
The idea of surgically implanting bombs has been
examined by intelligence agencies in the past, but new information has
suggested that terrorist groups are seriously considering the technique,
officials said.
A spokesman for the Transportation Security
Administration, Nicholas Kimball, said that passengers flying to the
United States are likely to face additional screening measures.
“These measures are designed to be unpredictable, so
passengers should not expect to see the same activity at every
international airport,” Kimball said. “Measures may include interaction
with passengers, in addition to the use of other screening methods such
as pat-downs and the use of enhanced tools and technologies.”
Existing scanners cannot detect certain explosive
materials like PETN under the skin. They would have to rely on explosive
trace detection swabs to detect bombs under the skin, and those are
only conducted on a fraction of the passengers.
———
(c) 2011, Tribune Co.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
