http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/415309.html
Last Update: 14/04/2004 10:20

Expert: Iraq war's made flying more dangerous than ever

By Associated Press



SINGAPORE - The U.S.-led war in Iraq has made flying more dangerous than ever, by spurring Islamic militants to plot revenge attacks on civilian targets including commercial planes and airports, a terrorism expert warned Wednesday.

"After Iraq, the threat of terrorism has increased many hundreds of times," expert Rohan Gunaratna said at an aviation security conference in Singapore.

"The U.S. invasion of Iraq has given a new lease of life to these
organizations because terrorist groups depend on support," said Gunaratna, the author of a book on al-Qaida. "The grief and anger and suffering of Muslims in Iraq and elsewhere is being ably exploited by different terrorist and extremist groups."
Gunaratna warned of attacks on the aviation sector if security officials maintain routine measures. He urged aviation authorities to update and alter security measures "every few months" to prevent terrorism.

"If you don't change security measures, we're going to suffer another attack as Madrid has shown," he added, referring to the March 11 train bombings in Spain that killed over 190 people.

Gunaratna said there were between 30 to 40 al-Qaida-linked terror groups that could potentially launch an attack. He had predicted in January these groups would launch a major attack every three months.

Earlier at the conference, a Singapore official warned terrorists could use stowaways carrying explosives or weapons, or shoulder-fired missiles to bring down planes. He also said terrorists could send a bomb by cargo.

"Given the iconic status enjoyed by airports and airlines, it is paramount that all players in the global aviation industry continue to remain vigilant," the city-state's second minister for transport Balaji Sadasivansaid.

Singapore, a staunch U.S. ally, has placed air marshals on national carrier Singapore Airlines and sister company SilkAir and said it was developing a missile defense shield to prevent possible attacks from the sky.

In 2001, Singapore authorities said they broke up a plot by Islamic militants to fly a plane into the city-state's Changi Airport and blow up the U.S. Embassy here.

"We cannot afford to take any chances with our aviation sector, which accounts for as much as 9.2 percent of Singapore's gross domestic product," added Sadasivan. Singapore's GDP in 2003 was worth around 160 billion Singapore
dollars (US$95 billion).