The System is Working! MI5 Knew About Crotch Bomber, Said Nothing

Nice to see Britain's MI5 on top of things as our own Department of Homeland Security. I guess their system is working.

Britain's top spy agency, MI5, detected Detroit airline bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab talking with London Islamist extremists three years ago, but said nothing, according to a new report.

The man who tried to blow up a flight from Amsterdam with an underwear bomb was a student at University College London when he had "multiple communications" with suspected terrorists, the Sunday Times of London reported.

The paper's source said the 23-year-old Nigerian was "starting out on a journey" of hate that led him to attempt the Christmas Day bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253.

Head firmly buried in the sand, Obama blames -- what else? -- poverty in Yemen, no the twisted brand of Muslim ideology.

Meanwhile, President Obama yesterday made his strongest statement yet tying the bomber to Yemen's al Qaeda branch.

"We know that he traveled to Yemen, a country grappling with crushing poverty and deadly insurgencies," Obama said in his weekly address.

"It appears that he joined an affiliate of al Qaeda, and that this group -- al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula -- trained him, equipped him with those explosives and directed him to attack that plane headed for America."

He seems quite sure of all this after spending the past week scouring for clues on Hawaii's finest golf courses. Still no calls for a 12/25 Commission, I guess.

Seems according to MI5 Abdulmutallab was one of many "youths" being recruited by Al Qaeda.

Intelligence officials have defended their decision not to flag Abdulmutallab as a possible terrorist risk. They say he was one of many youths who mix with extremists, but are not themselves thought to be involved in plotting or supporting terrorism.

A senior Whitehall official said the intelligence agency had conducted a quick assessment of Abdulmutallab while he was living in London and concluded that he was not a threat to national security.

“There had to be a judgment made depending on the nature of the relationship as to whether there was any threat,” said one official. “Someone will have judged: okay, [he is] noted but if there was no evidence of a threat, [they would] move on.”

British officials believe Abdulmutallab was recruited to undertake the Detroit plot after he left Britain, most probably while he was in Yemen last summer. Up to a dozen young British Muslims are thought to be engaged in terrorist training there, according to officials.

While in Britain, Abdulmutallab attended a mosque in Goodge Street, central London, which is run by the Muslim World League, a Saudi-based organisation. The league promulgates a fundamentalist interpretation of Islam, but has repeatedly condemned terrorism.

One of the radical preachers believed to have inspired Abdulmutallab is the American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who is based in Yemen and is believed to have inspired several terrorist cells in Britain and the United States.