Spam Text Prematurely Blows Up Suicide Bomber 573
Hugh Pickens writes "A suicide bomber's plan to detonate explosives in Central Moscow on New Year's Eve was foiled when she received an unexpected spam text message that caused her deadly payload to blow up too early. A message wishing her a happy new year came hours before the unnamed woman was to set off her suicide belt near Red Square, an act of terrorism that could have killed hundreds of people. Islamist terrorists in Russia often use mobile phones as detonators. The bomber's handler, who is usually watching his charge, sends the bomber a text message to set off the explosive belt at the moment when it is thought they can inflict maximum casualties."
Re:Good (Score:2, Informative)
Islam != terrorism.
Please study your religions. Islam is the world's most common religion; only a tiny fraction of its adherents are violent. It's just like saying "How are we going to get rid of Christianity? They wont be happy until they're raped all our children."
Re:Good (Score:4, Informative)
Indeed - any fundie is a danger, no matter what invisible sky being they believe in
My impression is that there's a lot more justification (and impetus) for forcible world domination in the Q'uran than there is in the Bible.
Not that that stopped the Western European powers from using it as a justification. But I suspect it was more a pretense for most of those leaders, than it was anything driven by a desire to be good Christians.
Re:Best story ever. [citation needed] (Score:5, Informative)
If you're a suicide bomber, then can't you be trusted with your own detonator?
Really? You really have to ask if someone whose bright plan is to strap explosives to themselves is level-headed enough to be trusted the with detonator?
And you're capable of building a bomb with a remote detonator, then why would you be a suicide bomber (and not just a "drop it and run" bomber)?
It is very rare that a suicide bomber is also the bomb maker. They are usually some idealistic kid or even mentally handicapped person that the bomb maker or cell takes advantage of and convinces to go blow themselves up. The remote detonator takes away that deciding moment of whether they can really press the button and allows for remote detonation in the case they are ID'd and shot. The use of a suicide bomber makes a statement and display about the "dedication" to the cause and has a larger psychological impact. It also does not leave open the chance for the drop-off guy to get picked up and interrogated.
Re:Best story ever. [citation needed] (Score:5, Informative)
No, suicide bombers are usually college educated middle class people. I know that makes for a more confusing narrative than "Unstable, idealistic, and poor," but it is true.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_bomber#Profile_of_attackers [wikipedia.org]
Re:Sad... (Score:5, Informative)
That is a completely unsupported statistic. Suicide bombers, especially female ones, are not easily profiled. The wikipedia article on it [wikipedia.org] links to a number articles and case studies where the opinion varies a great deal, but none suggest the women did it because her children were threatened.
And it's no excuse even if they did.