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Three more sought in ricin hunt
Britain's anti-terrorism police are looking for three more people in connection with the discovery of the deadly poison ricin in a north London flat. Six men - understood to be Algerians (I was right!)- were arrested on Sunday and security experts are trying to establish if they have links to al-Qaeda. Doesn't everyone? Only small traces of ricin were found in the operation - launched after a tip-off - but there are concerns an amount of poison could have been made at the flat and has been moved. Security sources said police were now looking for three more "key individuals" in connection with the case. They caught the cannon fodder, looking for the leaders Tony Blair said the arrests showed the continued threat of international terrorism was "present and real and with us now and its potential is huge". Castor oil beans - from which ricin is made - and equipment and containers for crushing the beans were found at the Wood Green flat where one of the men was arrested. Followed the instructions in their al-Queda training manual, or they watched the same episode of CSI I did last week. Doctors around the country have been alerted and told to look out for symptoms of ricin poisoning. Dead bodies? However, it is not believed to be an obvious choice for a weapon of mass destruction. To take effect, the toxin must enter the body by direct ingestion, inhalation or injection meaning it is more associated with assassination. That's what I'm thinking The most notable ricin case was the 1978 murder of the Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov. The KGB were suspected to be behind the killing, initiated on London's Waterloo Bridge using a poison tipped umbrella. I believe the Bulgarians handled this for the KGB All of the men were arrested on Sunday morning and are in their late teens, 20s and 30s. Forensic analysis should reveal whether the ricin was made at the flat, although officers believe this to be the case. Ricin is considered a potential biowarfare or bioterrorist agent and is on the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention's "B" list of agents - considered a moderate threat. Large quantities were reportedly found in caves in Afghanistan. It is relatively easy to manufacture in small amounts but would be considered an unusual agent to use for a mass attack as it must be ingested, inhaled or injected to take effect. Posted by: Steve 2003-01-08 |
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