Terrorism

The anti-terrorist gadgets are enterprises of our times. The new device, working on the basis of micro-wave radiation, was developed in the Research Center in Juelich, Germany, by the team of German scientist Norbert Klein.

The device called Emili 1 is able to detect liquids using micro-waves, and if it proves functional, it wouldn’t be necessary to hand over all the liquids when entering the board, as we got used to. Acids and combustibles should be detectable, and so it wouldn’t be possible to go on with those.

The ban on taking drinks, liquids, creams and children’s food bigger that 100ml packagings to planes was established after the terrorist attacks in London in July 2005.

Right now, if you are going through the Prague Airport, your drinks get scanned, however the ban still holds true.

German scientist Norbert Klein announced they are also working on a hand scanner and a special pad that would enable to detect explosives and ceramic weapons in shoes.

Information by LN

The American TV ABC News warned that besides Glasgow another target for terrorist attacks might be Czech airports or planes flying to/from Prague over the Atlantic.

However, Czech intelligence services claim that they are not aware of any possible terrorist threads. Jan Subert, the spokesman of the Czech Security Information Service (BIS) said that if there were any serious threads, the Czech Republic would definitely heighten the security measures.

The Minister of Interior Ivan Langer said that the Czech Republic hadn’t received any warnings from American secret services. The Czech Foreign Intelligence Service (UZSI) has intensified the cooperation with secret services in Great Britain as well as in other states.

More than 30 church school in Prague have been searched in order to find any traces of explosive materials. An anonymous person sent a letter last Tuesday in which he/she threaten with bomb attacks at these schools.

Policemen with trained dogs were searching in the buildings of kindergartens, primary and secondary schools but also in three theological faculties of Charles University. No bombs were found but policemen will continue guarding the places for the following days.

The same situation was in January this year. There were no bombs found at the schools and the anonymous writer is still unknown. It might be the same person again, probably with religious motives. The world Allah was mentioned in the last letter many times. If the writer is caught, he/she can be sentenced up to 15 years imprisonment.

According to the Czech Intelligence Agency BIS terrorists planned terrorist attacks in the Czech Republic already last year.

They acknowledge that in August 2005 a group of three Egyptian men tried to get into the cockpit of the CSA plane flying for Norwegian Oslo to Prague. When the cabin crew prevent the men from entering the cockpit and took them back to their seats, the Egyptians had an inadequate explanation for their behaviour. The Egyptian were detained at Prague airport Ruzyne and sent back to Egypt. The agency think that it might have been a test of security measures in CSA air planes.

But that is not all. Algerian man was expelled from the Czech Republic for planning terrorist attacks in Prague. He cannot return to Czech Republic any more. Prague was also facing terrorist threads at the end of September.

Intelligent agency warn that Prague is on the list of cities that might be attacked. Critical places are among others metro, railway, department stores or stadiums and according to BIS also Radio Free Europe which broadcast in Persian language into Iran.

Due to terrorist threats in Prague high security measures enlarged the number of policeman in the city and intensified the protection of historical buildings or important places in Prague. It happened on 23 September this year after warning that the terrorist might attack significant places in Prague, especially the Jewish ones.

After almost a month the Security Council announced today that the threats of terrorist attacks in Prague are not so big any more. “It does not seem that there are immediate terrorist threats in Prague now,” said the prime minister Mirek Topolanek. The police is reducing the number of police man in the city and the safety measures are not so severe any more.

Necessary security precautions will continue but their intensity will be based on the up-to-date evaluation of the security situation in Prague.

Czech newspaper MF DNES brings new information about terrorist threats in Prague: Arabic terrorist planned to kidnap tens of Jews during their celebration of the New Year, keep them as hostage and finally murder them.

Extremists planned that the release of hostage would be on condition that is not possible to meet, such as the withdrawal of the American troops from Iraq. Then the terrorist would explode the whole building. The attack would probably take place in the synagogue in Jeruzalemska street during the Jewish celebrations.

Two armed policemen guard in front of the synagogue, but it is possible that more plainclothes policemen are present. There are still enhanced security measures because of terrorist threats in Prague.

Prague police records raising number of anonymous bomb threat in Prague due to terrorist menace. All of them have been false alarms. This only raises the nervousness of Prague citizens.

Experts says that this kind of unbalanced people are using the event of terrorist thread, because it force the higher number of policemen to solve this false alarms. The people are mostly outsiders and their goal is to “control” others by their bomb calls. The second group are mostly young “jokers”.

Six anonymous calls appeared during the weekend. One of them said that a bomb is set in the metro tunnel in the bottom of Nuselsky bridge. Fortunately the metro was closed only for a half an hour.

The second one announced about a bomb in hotel Marriot. Over two hundred people were evacuated, still nothing has been there.

Police has to verify every announcement, even the kid’s voice can be heard on the other side of a telephone. On the other hand police is very effective in searching for those people. Modern technologies with a combination of Prague camera system make the fight against those people much easier. An offender can spend up to five years for spreading of a startle.

This weekend have brought the threat of terrorist attacks in Prague. Serious warning about possibility of bomb attack in Prague caused the biggest safety measures in Czech history since 11th September 2001 after the attack on World Trade Center in New York.

An extraordinary session of the Government became at Friday night, the public has been informed in 2.28 AM at Saturday night. Police forces has been mobilized since 4 AM. Terrorist threat is connected with the successful disposal of terrorist efforts in Norway few days ago. The investigation has shown that Prague could be in danger, mostly Jewish objects. Jews had a holiday this weekend, some their objects were closed.

Prague has been protected by dozens of policemen like synagogues, train stations, sub-way lines, the airport, Israel and U.S. embassies and other highly frequented places.
Large number of policemen are equipped with MP-5 sub-machine guns, and bullet-proof vests, armoured vehicles are already used like in front of Ruzyne airport. Police forces are trying to create as few restrictions in Prague as possible.

There is no reason to change habits and intentions for citizens or tourists. Feel free to visit shopping centres, stadiums, monuments or any other places in Prague.

Emergency plan is ready to be launch if necessary. Hospitals and ambulances are prepared for possibility of attack in Prague. They cooperate with medical support in Central Bohemia. They can replace their standard work in the of terrorist attack.