Napolitano praises air marshals in latest airline incident
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Sharply criticized over last year’s Christmas Day airline terror attack, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on Thursday praised federal air marshals for their handling of another airline incident on Wednesday.
A Qatari diplomat set off security concerns when he apparently tried to sneak a cigarette on United Airlines Flight 663, traveling from Washington to Denver with more than 160 passengers and crew aboard. When confronted, the diplomat made a sarcastic comment about lighting his shoes, a reference to previous terror attacks, officials said.
The diplomat was questioned and released without charges. “I commend the federal air marshals on board United Airlines flight 663 last night, who swiftly responded to a potential threat to passenger safety while the plane was in flight.” Napolitano said in a statement.
“We always treat security-related incidents seriously until verified otherwise, and thankfully this incident posed no actual security threat,” she said.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian Muslim, has been charged with trying to detonate explosives hidden in his underwear while flying on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day, 2009. He is in U.S. custody, pending further legal action.
The incident sparked a host of complaints, including whether officials had properly investigated Abdulmutallab after his father, a prominent banker, had notified authorities that his son was becoming radicalized and could be a terror danger.
After Abdulmutallab was apprehended, Napolitano said that airline security steps had worked. However, after continued questions, President Obama ordered a full review of security and investigation procedures, saying there had been systemic and human failures.
After the review, the administration imposed new security restrictions on travelers and updated how it handles the government’s listing of potential radicals.
In her statement on the latest incident, Napolitano noted that the Transportation Security Administration has increased deployments of federal air marshals on domestic and international flights.
-- Michael Muskal
