Police hunt bomb team accomplices

[fedsron2us]

Police are hunting the London bombers' accomplices, as it emerged explosives found in Leeds are similar to those used in other al-Qaeda-linked attacks.

Explosives in a house are thought to have been made from ingredients available from high-street chemists.

Police are hunting the London bombings mastermind, and an Egyptian chemistry student who has fled his Leeds home.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4684869.stm

A week after the Prime Minister told the House of Commons that the London bombs were made of 'miltary grade' explosives the BBC are reporting that materials found in Leeds suggest that they were constructed using chemicals available in any High Street chemists. They are said to be similar to those used in other Al Qaeda attacks.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4684869.stm

It would appear that despite thirty five years experience of dealing with IRA attacks the British forensic teams initial conclusions were wrong. The article does not specify which other Al Qaeda attacks this type of device was used. It can not be Madrid because those bombs used Goma-2 which is a commercial explosive.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goma-2

Presumably, they do not mean the Istanbul bombs either because those were made using the fertiliser ammonium nitrate.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/14/world/main611...

The only Al Qaeda bomber who appears to have used actone peroxide is Richard Reid the shoe bomber.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetone_peroxide

This stuff is very unstable and even professional chemists are wary of using it. You would have to possess suicidal tendencies even to want to carry it and most terror groups such as the IRA avoid it completely.

I suppose this announcement will get the intelligence agencies off the hook.

nb - (the wikipedia has been very quick to add the link between its article on acetone peroxide to the London bombings)