Reuters : U.S. plane incident not terrorism: Dutch minister

U.S. plane incident not terrorism: Dutch minister

Twelve held for US plane incident of Indian origin

By Alexandra Hudson | August 24, 2006

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch authorities said on Thursday there was no threat of terrorism when a U.S. airliner bound for India was forced to turn back to Amsterdam over security concerns.

Police arrested 12 of the 149 passengers on Northwest Airlines flight 42 to Mumbai on Wednesday after the crew reported suspicious passenger behavior.

Passengers on the plane said air marshals intervened after the men began fidgeting with mobile phones and plastic bags.

Indian junior foreign minister Anand Sharma told reporters all 12 were born in Mumbai.

"It does not appear to be terror related," Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner told journalists in The Hague.

A spokeswoman for the Dutch counter-terrorism office added: "There is no indication of a terrorist threat on the plane that returned to Schiphol."

Two Dutch F-16 jets accompanied the 273-seat DC10-30 plane which had reached German airspace before it turned back.

Security has been increased at airports worldwide in the past two weeks after British police said they had foiled a plot to blow up planes over the Atlantic using liquid explosives.

Mumbai has also been on high alert after commuter train bombings on July 11 that killed 186 people.

An Indian Foreign Ministry official said all 12 were men of Indian origin, although some apparently held other passports. Dutch authorities have granted consular access to those who are Indian nationals.

"The 12 are being interrogated," said a spokesman for Haarlem prosecutors, adding a news conference would be held later on Thursday. He was unable to give details of the suspects or any charges they might face.

Dutch police can hold suspects for three days without charge, extended by another three days in special circumstances.

The same flight departed for Mumbai, India's financial hub, on Thursday morning after the rest of the passengers spent the night in hotels.

The return of the Northwest plane to Amsterdam did not lead to heightened security and did not affect other flights at Schiphol, Europe's third largest cargo airport and fourth biggest passenger hub, an airport spokeswoman said.

There have been several scares since the British plot was uncovered, including at the Tri-State Airport in Huntington, West Virginia; on a Pacific Blue flight from Fiji to Sydney and on a British plane from London to Egypt diverted to Italy.

(Additional reporting by Nicola Leske in Amsterdam and Y.P. Rajesh in New Delhi)

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