Al-Qaeda develops intestine-bomb that can evade airport security

Terrorist outfit Al-Qaeda has reportedly developed a deadly explosive device that can be hidden in a suicide bomber's intestine and go undetected at airport security checkpoints.

Recently, an Al-Qaeda militant passed through several airline security checks with such a bomb hidden in his intestine and made a failed attempt to assassinate a prominent Saudi Prince.

Prince Mohammed Bin Nayef is the head of Saudi Arabia's counter terrorism operations and is responsible for the country's much-publicised terrorist rehabilitation programme.

The episode occurred on August 28, when one of Saudi Arabia's most wanted, Abdullah Hassan Tali al-Asiri offered to surrender before Prince Nayef.

Al-Asiri took two flights, one aboard the Prince's private jet. He spent 30 hours closely guarded by the Prince's personal security. Later, at Prince's private palace in Jeddah, al-Asiri was granted an audience with the Prince.

Al-Asiri briefly called other militants to tell them that he was standing alongside Prince Nayef. He claimed that more Al-Qaeda militants wanted to surrender and asks the Prince to take the cell phone. Some 14 seconds later the bomb went off.

According to security experts, the explosive and an electronic detonator were probably contained in a long thin animal gut casing to protect it from stomach acid.

The Saudis believe the bomb weighed 100gm and was made with Pentaerythritol Tetranitrate or PETN plastic explosive, to avoid detection by airport and other metal detectors.