DATE=8/26/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=OLYMPICS TERRORISM (L ONLY)
NUMBER=2-265872
BYLINE=ANNE BARKER
DATELINE=ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: New Zealand police have uncovered and foiled a
possible terrorist plot to blow up a nuclear reactor
in Sydney during next month's Olympic games. Anne
Barker reports there is speculation the plot may be
the work of sympathizers of the Saudi born terror
suspect Osama Bin Laden.
TEXT: New Zealand police have revealed they raided
houses in the countries largest city, Auckland, in
March, and found evidence of a conspiracy to blow up
the nuclear research reactor at Lucas Heights in
Sydney's south.
The houses were home to Afghan refugees and the raids
were part of an investigation into a people smuggling
racket to get illegal immigrants from Afghanistan into
New Zealand.
The New Zealand Herald says about 20 refugees from
Afghanistan and possibly Iran were involved. The
living room of one house had been converted into a
virtual command center. Complete with a conference
center and maps. Police say material found included a
map of Sydney highlighting the nuclear reactor and
detailing its access and exit routes. Entries in a
note book outlined police security tactics for the
Commonwealth Games held in Auckland in 1990.
Police arrested three people during the raids but they
were only charged with minor offenses. News of the
possible conspiracy has sent a shock wave through
Sydney, although Australian authorities say the risk
of a terrorist attack is low. Residents living near
the nuclear plant have demanded it be shut down
immediately as was a similar nuclear facility in
Atlanta before the start of the 1996 Olympics.
Sydney police say they are treating the threat
seriously but say they have no plans to shut down the
reactor. Sydney has a population has a population of
about four and one-half million, with up to a million
visitors expected during the games.
The New Zealand Herald has speculated the plot may
have been hatched by sympathizers of Saudi born Osama
Bin Laden, the man the United States accuses of
masterminding the deadly 1998 bombings of two
embassies in Africa.
The Australian foreign affairs minister Alexander
Downer last week said Bin Laden was an example of the
sort of people Australian authorities were monitoring
in the lead-up to the games. But Mr. Downer said at
this stage there was no indication that there was any
direct threat to the Olympics. The New Zealand Herald
says security forces in the United States, Canada and
Britain are looking into the plot. (signed)
NEB/AB/KBK
26-Aug-2000 05:03 AM EDT (26-Aug-2000 0903 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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