The Glasgow Airport Staged Jeep Bomb Attack - June 2007

Video Transcript:

Hello, good evening. The government says Britain faces an imminent terrorist attack. The national security threat level has tonight been raised to critical. The decision came after a burning car was driven into the doors of the main terminal building at Glasgow Airport. Two men fed the vehicle but were arrested at the scene. One of them is in a critical condition in hospital suffering from burns. Police are linking that explosion to the unexploded car bombs found in London yesterday. Andrew Castle is at Glasgow Airport for us, Andy. Yes, tonight Glasgow Airport is sealed off by the police and emergency forces and it will remain sealed off for the foreseeable future as the police investigate what they now confirmed to be a terrorist attack on one of the country's busiest airports. In the middle of the afternoon at the start of the holiday season, a deliberate attempt to drive a car into a packed British airport and blow it up. These pictures were filmed by members of the public within seconds of the car ramming into the airport's main doors to the check-in concourse. Inside thousands of people were queuing for their flights. Many were families with young children. Today's the first day of the school holidays in Scotland and most were embarking on flights abroad. At first everyone thought there had been an accident but the two drivers both described as young Asians tried to prevent emergency crews approaching. This was the moment one of the men his body badly burned was subdued, embedded in the main entrance of Glasgow Airport. Within seconds those who saw the incident knew it was a deliberate act of terrorism. These new pictures obtained by the BBC show the police detaining the bomb suspects. This is Kaffir Ahmed, the driver of the Jeep, in the moments after officers put out the flames burning his body. In the background his accomplice Dr Bilal Abdelah, suffering from the effects of CS spray used to subdue him is seen being led away by an off-duty policeman. Kaffir Ahmed has today been moved to a specialist burns unit in Glasgow where he's still critical. Officers involved in his arrest were amazed he was still alive. As I can assure you, what value the information he may be able to impart to the inquiry in the future. The officers at the airport can see with some satisfaction, deliver the both accused alive to the inquiry team. A few metres away there was a different concern for the firefighters. How to prevent the Jeep packed with gas cylinders from exploding. To the immense relief of everyone concerned they were successful and a plot to bring mass injury and death to Glasgow was averted. And Dr Kassel BBC News Glasgow. With me is John Smeater and I know you were taking a break from work. You were very close by what just a few metres. Oh but 20 yards away from it. This ACS, Cina Jeep, Kerminna Corner, heard a commotion, Kerminna Corner, Cina Jeep crashed in the front terminal building, it was on flames. Cina Ag, man, get out the passenger side of the vehicle. As a policeman was coming to assist, the man then attacked the policeman. I thought that's not right. I ran over to assist the policeman. Other members of the public did the same. One of them injured in themselves as he was actually hit by the attacker. So I mean a female member of security, Hank Mary. Her name was, her name was Mary. I mean her pulled the gentleman further away from the burning vehicle to the side and as we were doing that we've seen the man who was covered and head to toe covered and flames got up and he also tried to attack the police. So quite an unbelievable thing to actually see happening. What was going through your mind at the time? My mind was quite a bit of a police man. You know, no letting these guys get away with this. She had worked, you know, years ago. But Mr. Scorry, you know, quite a good get this sort of, you know. How easy would it have been to drive a car into the door to the terminal building? Mary, she's doing quite hard now because only front's tax is only and then there's a barrier. So to get through, you've got to come through a barrier, you know, and then they're between that and the front of the terminal. My big got about 15 yards between there. So you know, it's not the easiest thing to do, but if someone's wanting to do that, they're going to do it anyway. There's nowhere going to stop them. And was the car on fire? Our car was on fire. Total flames even the bulging start to take like, and there was like flames shooting at the back. You definitely seem like there was gas or, you know, venting of some sort. It definitely wasn't fuel, but it was definitely venting like a gas. Gas coming at a gas cylinder. You know anyone that's throwing a, a little kind of, the other one on a bonfire. We'll know exactly when the hand gets hot and it's piercés it makes that noise. Well, that's exactly just that excitement. Bigger, bigger vessel. How are the passengers dealing with this? People were they watching? Were they trying to move out of the way? People were, people were, as soon as the commotion started to happen, people just started to move. Everyone just started to move away from it. That's really what, you know, said to me, well, people were running away. What's going on here? As I came around the corner, cars and flames. You got to go and, you got to go and help the policeman. You got to go and try and get it. Subdue to that, guy, you know? Was it caramel? Was there confusion? I definitely, I think there was a slight bit of confusion. Because nobody really knew what was happening, you know. But I think once, like with after, like with 10 seconds, people clopped. You know, maybe what's happening in the news, Alaska? Couple of days and they decided to go. Everyone's just moved. One man then. Security are out straight away moving people on, you know? It was just trying to keep people away from the Berlin vehicle. Did you get the sense these men were quite determined? Or totally determined, totally, absolutely determined. You could see, you could see it the way they came out. The aggression, it was just that policeman's getting it. You know, you could see it was going straight for the policeman. You know, and the policemen's hardly leaving. He's running up to assist. And the policemen's, you know, getting attacked, you know, guys just started throwing punches and let myself and other members of the public have just got it trying to assist the police. Did you get a sense of how many people got involved? Oh, I'd say about four, five, six. Maybe even a wee bit more, you know, because there are people beginning to come, maybe further away, but we just moved them back, you know, once the people were subdued and the police are there. Okay. The vehicle was in fire. As you know, man, exit the vehicle from the passenger side. And he then went and attacked a policeman who came to assist him. Now that's all he did. He came out. And he went straight for the policeman. So I've seen this happening and said, well, I've got to go and help the policeman. So I've ran over on all three other members of the public, but we've all run over and they've just tried to attack the guy. Try to get the guy. And the guy's run about throwing punches. Just try to attack the policeman. Now, John's meeting is being held across cyberspace as a hero. Websites have sprung up everywhere. In one, he's Superman. In another, the diehard cop, John McLean. His actions everywhere lauded as a victory of good over evil. And yet another, the BAA employee, becomes a BAA agent, modeled on Jack Bauer, the hero of the TV series 24. Even Scotland's politicians are paying tribute to those who helped the police. Well, that's because one of the places where the general public and members of the run towards the sea of an instant to help the police. The Glasgow bomb attack shocked and frightened many, but it also brought out the extraordinary courage of members of the public. For most people, what they'll remember here are the actions of a baggage handler, of a bus driver and a holiday maker returning home, who all ignored the dangers they faced to go to the aid of the police and to help foil the bomb attack here at the airport. And to castle, BBC News, Glasgow Airport. Yeah, he's standing. I'm sorry, a line on the ground, covers from head to toe and flame. When people go up to take a system and he gets up and tries to attack the policeman, he's covering flame and he's trying to attack this policeman. You know what? It's just unbelievable. Would he say anything? I was shouting, Allah. He was shouting, Allah. He was shouting, Allah. He was throwing punches. Allah, Allah. It's okay, I was everybody was running, running away from the car up towards this side of the airport. And then the police arrived and told us to keep moving back, moving back, moving back. And then a few minutes later, the fire bit gave the right and then we saw him stand up at the fire out. But at that time, the building had actually got fire as well. We just started to wait about five yards away, because we were over standing, next minute the car just was revving and then next minute just blew up. So good. And then we just started running. So it's just totally scaled. Just hit it on. Glasgow is Scotland's busiest airport in the summer months. It's close to the M8, the main motorway linking Glasgow with Edinburgh. The target was the main checking area at the front of the building. Police have confirmed two men have been arrested and detained. All flights in and out of Glasgow have been cancelled. The Prime Minister has met senior police officers, members of the security services and the home secretary. Tonight, the country is on critical alert. The first duty of a government is the security and safety of all the British people. So it is right to raise the levels of security at airports and in crowded places. I'm Byron Harman. And I'm Michelle Gillan in for Nancy Pender. The world is on alert with the attempted terrorist attack yesterday on the international airport in Glasgow, Scotland. Well, Byron, many travelers arrived at Ohera International Airport today from Glasgow, Scotland. They said the height security was very evident in Glasgow, extra police officers carrying rifles and a lot more questions from authorities. Many travelers said they're glad to be back home. Glasgow's airport did reopen today, but many more security precautions were in place. Behavior that has now led authorities to stop and question anyone who appears suspicious by look or behavior.