Tunnel plot thwarted

NEW YORK - A terrorist plot to inflict death and destruction by attacking train tunnels used by tens of thousands of commuters each day was thwarted before the men could travel to the United States, authorities said Friday.

Eight suspects — including an al-Qaida loyalist arrested in Lebanon and two others in custody elsewhere — had hoped to pull off the attack in October or November, federal officials said. But federal investigators working with their counterparts in six other countries intervened.

"It was never a concern that this would actually be executed," said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. "We were, as I say, all over this."

Initial reports said that the terrorists wanted to attack the Holland Tunnel, a major thoroughfare for cars entering Manhattan. But officials said the group had specifically mentioned only the PATH train tunnels that commuters travel through on their way to New York and New Jersey.

"This is a plot that involved martyrdom and explosives" and focused on the "tubes that connect Jersey and lower Manhattan," said FBI Assistant Director Mark J. Mershon.

A federal law enforcement official said the suspects hoped to inflict damage on the U.S. economy.

The men believed that by bombing the train tunnels, they could unleash a severe flood on lower Manhattan, including Wall Street, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. The official said investigators believe that an attack on a PATH tunnel, unlike the Holland Tunnel, could have achieved that goal.

Investigators decided in recent weeks that the "plotting for this attack had matured to a point where it appeared that the individuals were about to move forward," Mershon said. "They were about to go to a phase where they would attempt to surveil targets, establish a regimen of attack and acquire the resources necessary to effectuate the attacks."

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Yes, yes, this is all very interesting, but we can't help but wonder if the civil liberties of any these chaps were violated.

We're sure the ACLU is on the case.