Doubts Arise Over Amsterdam-Bound 'Terrorists'

The pair of United Airlines terror suspects who successfully passed through airport security in Birmingham and Chicago before being arrested in Amsterdam may not be terrorists after all. Ahmed Mohamed Nasser al Soofi, a Yemeni and permanent U.S. resident, and Hezem Abdullah Thabi al Murisi, a Yemeni on a U.S. visitor’s visa, were arrested in Amsterdam on Monday on charges of suspected terrorism stemming from al Soofi’s suspicious luggage. The luggage reportedly contained a cell phone taped to a Pepto-Bismol bottle, several watches taped together, a box cutter, and knives. Today, those suspicions seem to be misguided. “I do not think they had any intentions” of committing terrorism, Yemen's consul general in Detroit said Tuesday. The men don't appear on any U.S. terror watch lists, and a U.S. official said that they don't expect to charge the two men. Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement today, “This matter is under investigation but as of right now, these two passengers have not been charged with any crime in the United States and we caution you against jumping to any conclusions.”