Terrorists Target Miami?
I read this morning about the three men who were arrested in connection with a possible terrorist threat against Miami.
This quote caught my eye:
One of the men said, ?We do not have enough to bring it down,? she added.
Bring down what? If this whole thing turns out to be genuine, I’m guessing that the First Union Financial Center is/was the target. It’s the tallest building in Miami, and it’s a financial center, as was the WTC. Obviously, al Qaeda has made the U.S. economy it’s chief target and would see this as a blow against capitalism. The building is also fairly recognizable against the Miami skyline and would certainly be noticably absent if it were removed.
Other potential targets in Miami:
Bank of America Tower is another financial center with unique architecture.
Courthouse Center houses government offices, another likely target for terrorists.
The Miami-Dade County Courthouse is also a governmental target.
Freedom Tower. The name alone makes it a target. It is also fairly unique architecturally, was orginally build to house the Miami Daily News, which would make it a media target. It now houses the Miami Mayor’s office.
Update: Reading the same story on CNN, I was struck by this quote:
Bomb squad investigators saw wires sticking out of a package in one of the cars, and used a water cannon to blow it apart, an official said. The package turned out to be medical equipment.
I find myself wondering if the medical equipment that was found contains radioactive materials. As reported in the Washington Post, some 1500 pieces of equipment containing radioactive materials have gone missing since 1996. Maybe the medical equipment in the bag they blew apart was destined to be part of a “dirty bomb” that was to be detonated in downtown Miami?
Second Update: Bigwig noticed that the men mentioned that they were “five hours behind”. His thought: why would they be behind schedule unless they were supposed to rendevous with others in Miami?
