Cruise Ship Terror Plot Thwarted

A Turkish court on Thursday charged a Syrian suspected of plotting to slam speedboats packed with explosives into cruise ships filled with Israeli tourists, according to an AP report. The suspect was arrested on August 6. Five cruise ships carrying Israeli tourists were diverted from Turkish ports in recent days following intelligence reports that a terror attack was imminent. Israel urged its citizens not to visit beach resorts on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Police said Sakra is also suspected as a go-between for al-Qaida and Turkish extremists responsible for the 2003 bombings of two synagogues, the British Consulate and a British bank. He also is suspected of having helped the bombing masterminds flee the country. See "Israeli Cruise Attack Plot Exposed," C. Onur Ant, Associated Press at CBS News, 8/11/05.