Hambali admits plan to hit embassies, planes

[Robb]

Hambali admits plan to hit embassies, planes

BANGKOK - Alleged terror chief Hambali has admitted planning to bomb embassies and use missiles to attack commercial airliners in Bangkok, said a Thai security official involved in his August arrest.

"During interrogation, Hambali admitted that he was preparing to bomb (backpacker area) Khao San Road, and the embassies of the United States, Israel and Japan," the source said, adding that he had already scouted the sites.

"He was also planning to use missiles to attack planes at Bangkok International Airport," the source added, speaking on condition of anonymity.

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Hambali is believed to be the Asian pointman for the al-Qaeda group which is blamed for the September 11 attacks on the United States, and the operations chief of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), a Southeast Asian terror network accused of carrying out last October's Bali bombings and a string of other attacks.

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