FBI foil New York terror plot

On the day the Statue of Liberty was opened to visitors for the first time since September 11, 2001, the threat of terrorism once again cast a shadow over New York City.

Undercover FBI officials arrested four men on Wednesday over an alleged terrorist plot to bomb two synagogues and shoot down military planes. The operation came as journalists were allowed inside Lady Liberty in advance of her official and symbolic reopening on July 4.
 
The four men were held after leaving what they believed were explosives in cars outside Riverdale Temple and the Riverdale Jewish Centre in the Bronx area of the city. The bombs were, in fact, fakes that the men had obtained with the help of an FBI mole.
 
The gang are said to have bought inactive missiles and explosives from the mole. It is claimed they were plotting to shoot down military planes from the New York Air National Guard base at Stewart airport in Newburgh, and had conducted surveillance of the base.
 
The four were due to appear in court today charged with conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction and conspiracy to acquire and use anti-aircraft missiles, according to the US attorney's office.
 
Earlier yesterday, a group of reporters and photographers was allowed up to the crown of the Statue of Liberty for the first time since it was closed on 9/11. It was the first time the transformed Manhattan skyline - minus the Twin Towers - had been seen from this perspective in eight years. ·