Terror plot led to drone strikes

Associated Press

LONDON

Security officials said Wednesday a terror plot to wage Mumbai-style shooting sprees or other attacks in Britain, France and Germany is still active and that recent CIA strikes in Pakistan were aimed at al-Qaida operatives suspected in the threat.

The plot was still in its early stages and not considered serious enough to raise the terror threat level, officials said. Still, the Eiffel Tower in Paris was evacuated briefly Tuesday — the second time in two weeks because of an unspecified threat — and French police were on alert.

A heavy police presence was seen Wednesday around Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and Big Ben. Victoria Station was evacuated briefly after an unusual smell was reported.

“This plot was in its embryonic stages,” a British government official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of his work. He said the plot had preoccupied the security community more than other recent threats but did not merit changing the security threat level from severe to critical.

Some details about the plot came from Ahmed Siddiqui, a German citizen of Afghan background who was captured in Afghanistan in July, a U.S. official said.

Intelligence authorities used National Security Agency wiretaps to flesh out details, U.S. officials said, and though a Mumbai-style shooting spree was one possibility, there was no concrete plan.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told reporters Wednesday the U.S. was working closely with its European allies but declined to provide specifics.

The Department of Homeland Security would not say Wednesday whether U.S. security has been enhanced as a result of the terror threats in Europe.

Revelations of the plot came just ahead of the anniversary today of the publication of the Prophet Muhammad cartoons in a Danish newspaper.