Suspect 'planned to blow up mall'

NEW YORK - Declaring that a domestic terrorism threat had been thwarted, United States prosecutors announced the arrest of a Massachusetts man who was allegedly part of a conspiracy to kill Americans in shopping centres and US soldiers in Iraq as well as target two prominent politicians for assassination.

Acting US Attorney Michael Loucks said the man, Tarek Mehanna, was arrested at his home near Boston. He said that between 2001 and 2008 Mehanna sought - but had never received - training in terrorist camps abroad and had worked with others to carry out their plans.

The alleged conspiracy involved two other men, one who is unnamed and was said to be co-operating with the authorities and another, Ahmad Abousamra, believed to be in Syria.

Mehanna, 27, had "multiple conversations about obtaining automatic weapons and randomly shooting people in shopping malls", said Loucks. He would not identify any shopping centres targeted or the politicians singled out by the group.

But prosecutors indicated that they had been in the executive branch of the Administration of former President George Bush.

The three men often discussed their desire to take part in "violent jihad against American interests" and talked about "their desire to die on the battlefield", prosecutors said.

But when they were unable to join terror groups in Iraq, Yemen and Pakistan, they found inspiration in the Washington-area sniper shootings and turned their interests to domestic terror pursuits while they plotted the attack on shopping malls, authorities said.

Mehanna had "multiple conversations about obtaining automatic weapons and randomly shooting people in shopping malls".

Loucks said the men justified attacks because US civilians pay taxes to support the US Government and because they are "non-believers".

He said that the shopping mall plan was abandoned after the men failed to track down automatic weapons.

- INDEPENDENT, ADDITIONAL REPORTING: AP