Via
CNN:
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Iraq's interior minister on Tuesday said authorities had foiled an al Qaeda plot that would have put hundreds of its men at critical guard posts around Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, home to the U.S. and other foreign embassies as well as the Iraqi government.
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A senior Defense Ministry official said the 421 al Qaeda fighters were recruited to storm the U.S. and British embassies and take hostages. Several ranking Defense Ministry officials have been jailed in the plot, the official said on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the information.
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Interior Minister Bayan Jabr, in an interview with The Associated Press, said the 421 al Qaeda recruits were one bureaucrat's signature away from acceptance into an Iraqi army battalion whose job is to control the gates and main squares in the Green Zone.
If this is true, it's certainly a great thing the plan was thwarted. However, it also means al Qaeda has gotten much more bold, and the scope of it's attacks have become even more focused and dangerous.
How could they have gotten so close? Will they attempt something similar in the future?
If we've learned anything about this shifty organization, it's that they're persistent and patient, so it's safe to assume they will try something like this again, and unfortunately...they only have to successful once.