"Fear of hijack forces Indian airports to go on high alert"

Tuesday, October 3, 2006

Fear of hijack forces Indian airports to go on high alert
Nepal - Nepalnews.com


Intelligence reports on the increased likelihood of hijack of Nepal-bound
airplanes from Indian cities have forced authorities in both countries to
step up vigilance.

Indian media have widely reported the heightened security citing
intelligence reports that terrorist group Lashkar-e-toiba is planning to
hijack a Nepal-bound airplane.

"Ten airports, mostly small, along the Nepal border have been put under
strict surveillance, following intelligence reports that Pakistani
terrorists backed by Lashkar-e-Toiba may enter through Nepal and target the
airports for hijacking a plane," reported Indian Express daily on October 3.

According to the daily, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which
is responsible for security at airports, has intensified security at
Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Lucknow, Amritsar, Guwahati, Patna, Kolkata,
Dibrugarh and Allahabad airports.

The airport security officials and CISF are checking hand baggage of
passengers and staff after the same passed through the X-ray scanner.

"The security force is also profiling the passengers by obtaining their
lists from the airlines concerned in advance. It frisks a passenger if he
appears to be a suspect," the report added.

The Hindustan Times daily adds that the high security arrangement was being
put in place "in the wake of Pakistan-based terrorist outfit LeT's suspected
plan to hijack a Nepal-bound aircraft for the release of Afzal, who is to be
hanged till death following a recent verdict of Supreme Court in connection
with terrorist attack on Parliament."

"Taking serious note of the advisory input of Union Home Ministry that four
Pakistani terrorists of LeT have been assigned by the outfit to hijack any
plane for the release of Afzal, the flights en-route to Nepal are being
checked in an unprecedented way by the security personnel. The advisory
input to the authorities of CISF here mentioned that two of the four
terrorists have managed to get a Nepalese passport," the daily adds.

Meanwhile, reports from Kathmandu say that authorities in the country's only
international airport - Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) - have also
heightened security in view of Indian concern. There are direct flights
between Kathmandu and Indian cities like New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai,
Bangalore and Varanasi.

The threat of hijacking Nepal-bound airplane is being taken up with utmost
seriousness by the authorities in both the countries especially since in
December 1999, Kashmiri terrorist group had hijacked a New Delhi-bound
Indian Airlines airplane from Kathmandu. The plane was flown to Kandahar in
then Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and was later released in exchange of a
prisoner Azhar Masood, who in subsequent years went on to float a separate
terrorist outfit named Jaish-e-Mohammad.

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