-Caveat Lector- [Russ' note: the German newspaper referred to below, Frankfuter Allgemeine Zeitung, is one of the most respected mainstream papers in the world. It has a Website at <www.faz.com>, but it doesn't contain all of the paper's English articles, and I'm unable to find the article being referenced. If anyone has copy of the article, preferably in Englidh, please send it to me. Thanks.] Newspaper: Echelon Gave Authorities Warning Of Attacks By Ned Stafford, Newsbytes FRANKFURT, GERMANY, 13 Sep 2001, 1:16 PM CST U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies received warning signals at least three months ago that Middle Eastern terrorists were planning to hijack commercial aircraft to use as weapons to attack important symbols of American and Israeli culture, according to a story in Germany's daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ). The FAZ, quoting unnamed German intelligence sources, said that the Echelon spy network was being used to collect information about the terrorist threats, and that U.K. intelligence services apparently also had advance warning. The FAZ, one of Germany's most respected dailies, said that even as far back as six months ago western and near-east press services were receiving information that such attacks were being planned. Within the American intelligence community, the warnings were taken seriously and surveillance intensified, the FAZ said. However, there was disagreement on how such terrorist attacks could be prevented, the newspaper said. Echelon is said to be a vast information collection system capable of monitoring all the electronic communications in the world. It is thought to be operated by the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. No government agency has ever confirmed or denied its existence. However, an EU committee that investigated Echelon for more than a year just last week reported its belief that the system does exist. The EU committee said that Echelon sucks up electronic transmissions "like a vacuum cleaner," using keyword search techniques to sift through enormous amounts of data. The FAZ, in its news story, described the system as covering the whole world with 120 satellites. The newspaper also said Israeli intelligence had collected information indicated that Arab terrorist groups planned to hijack planes in Europe to use as weapons to attack targets in Tel Aviv and other coastal cities in Israel. Because of increasing concerns of plane hijackings, Israel has tested a new x-ray machine at the Tel Aviv airport, the FAZ said. The machine capable of detecting all known explosive elements, even if only in small quantities, the newspaper said. The FAZ said that German intelligence fears that in coming days planes will be hijacked in Europe and the Near East, and that there is no sure way to protect against it. Reported by Newsbytes.com, http://www.newsbytes.com . 13:16 CST Reposted 14:52 CST Steve Wingate, Webmaster ANOMALOUS IMAGES AND UFO FILES http://www.anomalous-images.com <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
