The New York Daily News reports new details in the Najibullah Zazi terror plot against New York City. The attack was planned for Sept. 14, 15 or 16:

Zazi and his two Queens friends allegedly planned to strap explosives to their bodies and split up, heading for the Grand Central and Times Square stations - the two busiest subway stations in New York City.

They would board trains on the 1, 2, 3 and 6 lines at rush hour and planned to position themselves in the middle of the packed trains to ensure the maximum carnage when they blew themselves up, sources sai

Zazi, who is cooperating, has been moved from the MDC in Brooklyn to a "secure, undisclosed location." And authorities are extraditing another suspect from Pakistan in the case: [More...]

Yemen's Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi says Yemen will not hunt down American born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, believed to be hiding in Yemen.

The U.S. put al-Awlaki on its "kill or capture" list but Yemen says it has not been provided evidence he is a terrorist and that he is not a terrorist. Background here and here. [More...]

Did a diplomat from the Middle East try to set his shoes on fire on a United flight from DC to Denver? The flight landed safely. No word yet on whether explosives were involved.

The suspect was identified by authorities as a diplomat in the Qatar embassy in Washington, Mohammed al Modadi. The FBI said the man had full diplomat immunity as the 3rd secretary and vice-consul.

Update8:56 pm: The air marshals found no explosives. He may have been trying to smoke a cigarette in the bathroom. He's 25 to 26 years old.

Update 9:07 pm: Sounds like this was not a terror incident after all. The plane is still on the runway and the local news media is scrambling to get information. Officials now say it likely was a misunderstanding. Guy probably got caught after smoking and made dumb bad joke about trying to set shoes on fire.

Update: Yes, he was just copping a smoke in the bathroom. No charges will be filed.

The United States has added Muslim Cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen born in the U.S. but now believed to be in Yemen, to its "capture or kill" list.

Previously believed to be an inspirational rather than operational leader of al-Qaida Arabian Peninsula, a review of his status by the National Security Council determined he was "a proven threat."

There were signs this was coming back in February.

And the Yemen Observer is reporting AQAP leadership has left Yemen and moved to Somalia. Did al-Awlaki go with them?

A federal judge in San Francisco ruled today in an 45 page opinion (available here) that former President Bush's warrantless NSA wiretapping program was illegal.

The case involved the Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation, an Islamic charity, and two of its lawyers, Wendell Belew and Asim Ghafoor, who alleged their conversations were illegally intercepted. The Court granted their motion for summary judgment finding the Government is liable for damages for illegally wiretapping their conversations without a FISA warrant. [More...]

Nancy Hollander has an oped in the New York Times: A Terrorist Lawyer, And Proud of It.

I hope you will read the whole thing. Here's a snippet:

Contrary to recent attacks by those who claim to be supporters of American justice, my defense of people accused of serious and sometimes horrific crimes is not an endorsement of those crimes. Rather, it is a testament to the strength of my belief in, and commitment to, the American system of justice.

Why? Because in my defense of every client, I am defending the United States Constitution and the laws and treaties to which it is bound, and I am defending the rule of law. If I am a terrorist lawyer, I also am a rule-of-law lawyer, a constitutional lawyer and a treaty lawyer.

Criminal defense lawyers represent even those considered by society to be the lowest among us. How do we do it? As I used to answer when asked how I could represent Timothy McVeigh, "With pride and dedication." As Nancy says:[More..]

Osama bin Laden released a tape today, threatening to kill any captured Americans if Khalid Sheikh Mohmammed is executed.

"The White House has expressed its desire to execute him," bin Laden said, according to a translation provided by Flashpoint Partners, which is headed by terrorism expert Evan Kohlmann. "The day America makes that decision will be the day it has issued a death sentence for any one of you that is taken captive."

U.S. Reaction:

U.S. officials dismissed the threat, saying that it has long been clear that Americans captured by al-Qaeda cannot expect to live.

This sounds like a weeks-old message delivered by carrier pigeon.

That was quick. While a slew of news articles are still writing about a Colorado woman, Jamie Paulin-Ramirez, held in Ireland over the plot to kill a Swedish cartoonist who mocked the prophet Mohammed, it turns out she's already been released.

I guess there's still Jihad Jane for some people to worry about.

The Department of Justice OPR (Office of Professional Responsibility) Report on the torture (interrogation) memos from the Bush Administration has been released. You can access all here. It finds the memos did not violate professional ethics.

The report focuses on three men who worked at Justice under President Bush: John Yoo, Jay Bybee and Steven Bradbury. All three worked in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel, crafting the standards for interrogating high-value terrorism detainees.

....the report says the men "exercised poor judgment." That means the men will not face disbarment or criminal punishment.

The report includes e-mails between DOJ, the White House and the CIA. Shorter version: Move along, no misconduct here.

First we had the congressional hearing at which Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair gave details of information Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab (aka Private Underpants) has given to the FBI during debriefing sessions. He also explained that it's acceptable policy for the U.S. to target Americans overseas for assassination.

Now we have more law enforcement leaks about Abdulmutallab's debriefings: He's ratted out cleric (and American citizen) Anwar al-Awlaki. Not that al-Awlaki knew about his Christmas Day attack, just that he was his "teacher" and they had met and communicated, something al-Awlaki also acknowledges. [More...]

Via Glenn Greenwald, Joe Klein laments the Mirandizing of alleged Christmas Day bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. Klein writes:

[T]he bomber is an enemy combatant. He doesn't have Miranda rights. It is entirely possible that we lost valuable intelligence as a result of this stupidity. We don't torture anymore and that is good. The notion that we don't even properly interrogate those who attack us seems unbelievable.

I do not understand Klein's argument. Mirandizing Abdulmutallab did not mean that interrogation has to stop. It merely advises him of his rights with regard to criminal proceedings. Interrogation could have continued even if Abdulmutallab invoked his right to an attorney (remaining silent was always an option for him, Mirandized or not.) Moreover, I am not sure what Klein imagines can be done to an "enemy combatant." Of course Klein says, no torture, so then what? The Geneva Conventions speaks to this issue:

With the announcement today of the return of a Uzbek Guantanamo Bay detainee to Switzerland, the population at Gitmo is now down to 192. Of them, almost half are from Yemen, more than 40 have been cleared for release.

One of the topics expected to be addressed tomorrow at the London conference on Yemen, is the creation of a Yemeni rehab program, similar to the Saudi program, so that the Yemeni detainees can leave Guantnamo. The Telegraph reports:

A source close to the Obama administration said the Yemenis had agreed in principle to the establishment of a Reintegration and Risk Reduction Initiative, which would be internationally funded and monitored. Aimed at steering detainees back into society, it would be modeled on previous efforts in Northern Ireland, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

[More..]