By: Debra Gersh Hernandez TWO MORE OFFICES of the Arab-language newspaper Al Hayat were targeted with letter bombs, one of which went off injuring two people.
Five letter bombs were discovered in the mail to the Washington, D.C., office of the newspaper
Jan. 2 (E&P, Jan. 11, p. 5), though they were discovered before they exploded. Three more letter bombs, believed to be from the same source, were sent to the federal prison in Levenworth, Kan., the same week.
At the newspaper's headquarters in London, four letter bombs were discovered in the mail room Jan. 13. Alerted by a mail scanner installed after the Washington incident, a security guard attempting to remove one of the greeting-card-sized envelopes was injured when it exploded. Another guard nearby was treated for shock and hearing damage. The remaining three bombs were discovered later by police.
After hearing of the London explosion, the newspaper's United Nations correspondent asked officials there to monitor her mail more closely, especially since plastic explosives such as those used in all these bombs are difficult to detect with the X-ray scanners normally used at the U.N.
Three letter bombs were found addressed to the U.N. correspondent, prompting an evacuation of three floors of the building, where many press offices are located, and the cancellation of the noon news briefing. The bombs were disposed of by police.
Al Hayat editor Jihad Khazen told reporters he believes the campaign is being conducted by a well-organized group, but said the newspaper will continue publishing.
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