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Diplomat freed after plane alert Diplomat sparks US jet bomb scare
(about 4 hours later)
A Qatari diplomat has been released from custody after an incident on a flight from Washington to Denver. A Qatari diplomat has been freed from custody in the US after allegedly sparking a bomb scare on a plane.
Two F-16 jets were earlier scrambled to intercept the United Airlines plane and escort it to land safely at Denver airport, US officials said. Two F-16 jets were scrambled to intercept the United Airlines plane, on a flight from Washington to Denver.
Initial reports said the man, identified as Mohammed al-Madadi, had tried to set fire to his shoes. Reports said Mohammed al-Madadi, 27, had smoked in a toilet and then joked about setting fire to his shoes. No explosives were found.
But officials later said no explosives were found and he had apparently been trying to smoke in a plane toilet. US officials close to the case told news agencies it was likely Mr Madadi would leave the country.
Mr al-Madadi, the embassy's third secretary, was released by the US authorities after being questioned and was on his way back to Washington, according to a statement by Brown Lloyd James, a law firm representing the Qatari embassy. They said the US would not declare the diplomat, who has immunity from prosecution, "persona non grata".
Investigators were told that Mr al-Madadi was asked about the smell of smoke in the toilet and he made a joke that he had been trying to light his shoes - an apparent reference to the 2001 "shoe bomber" Richard Reid, AP news agency reported. However, one official told Agence France-Presse news agency: "His ability to function effectively has been significantly compromised."
The state department's official statement, from spokesman Philip Crowley, was: "We are satisfied with the seriousness by which they (Qatar) take what has occurred. That's why we have confidence that this will be resolved very quickly."
Prison visit
Mr Madadi, the embassy's third secretary, was released by the US authorities after being questioned, according to a statement by Brown Lloyd James, a law firm representing the Qatari embassy.
Unnamed US officials told Associated Press that Mr Madadi was on his way to attend a prison meeting with jailed al-Qaeda member, Ali al-Marri, at the time.
Investigators were told that Mr Madadi was asked about the smell of smoke in the toilet and he made a joke that he had been trying to light his shoes - an apparent reference to the 2001 "shoe bomber" Richard Reid, AP news agency reported.
Reid, a British citizen, tried to blow up a transatlantic jet carrying 197 passengers with explosives hidden in his footwear.Reid, a British citizen, tried to blow up a transatlantic jet carrying 197 passengers with explosives hidden in his footwear.
'Mistake'
The man detained in Denver was later identified as a Qatari diplomat stationed at the Washington embassy.
In a statement, Qatar's ambassador to the US, Ali Bin Fahad al-Hajri, said the diplomat "was certainly not engaged in any threatening activity", and "facts will reveal that this was all a mistake".In a statement, Qatar's ambassador to the US, Ali Bin Fahad al-Hajri, said the diplomat "was certainly not engaged in any threatening activity", and "facts will reveal that this was all a mistake".
The plane, with more than 160 passengers and crew on board, arrived at Denver International Airport from Washington's Reagan airport.The plane, with more than 160 passengers and crew on board, arrived at Denver International Airport from Washington's Reagan airport.
The crew had asked for the flight to be met on the ground by police, officials said.The crew had asked for the flight to be met on the ground by police, officials said.
The US Transportation Security Administration said it responded to "an incident on board United Airlines flight 663 [from Washington to Denver] after Federal Air Marshals responded to a passenger causing a disturbance on board the aircraft".
"Law enforcement and TSA responded to the scene and the passenger is currently being interviewed by law enforcement."
The incident came just months after a Nigerian man allegedly tried to detonate a bomb on a passenger jet arriving in the US.The incident came just months after a Nigerian man allegedly tried to detonate a bomb on a passenger jet arriving in the US.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, was overpowered by passengers and crew shortly before the Northwest Airlines plane landed in Detroit from Amsterdam on 24 December. He has been charged with attempting to destroy a plane. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, was overpowered by passengers and crew shortly before the Northwest Airlines plane landed in Detroit from Amsterdam on 25 December. He has been charged with attempting to destroy a plane.
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