Panic in the UK is giving way to quiet, writes Doaa El-Bey, but the aftermath of last week's terrorist threats is likely to last somewhat longer Last Monday, the British Home Office decision to downgrade the terrorism threat level from "critical" to "severe" marked an easing of tension since Thursday, when explosives were intercepted on their way to US-headed planes. Home Secretary John Reid explained that, while it remains "highly likely", an attack is no longer particularly "imminent" -- moving danger levels from the red to the orange zone; hence the lifting of the ban on in-flight baggage -- allowing one medium-sized item per passenger -- and the gradual relief from airport overcrowding. Some airports, including Edinburgh, Southampton, Manchester, Newcastle, Norwich, Liverpool, John Lennon and Blackpool, introduced the changes late on Sunday and early on Monday, while others -- Stansted, Glasgow and Aberdeen --waited till Monday noon. Heathrow and Gatwick did not implement the changes until late afternoon on Tuesday, making time for a comprehensive security briefing to airport staff. But, the panic over, people are likely to feel vulnerable for a long time yet. "We think we have the main suspects in this particular plot," Reid announced on a BBC programme. But "I have to be honest and say on the basis of what we know, there could be others out there... so the threat of a terrorist attack in the UK is still very substantial". What he did not say is that, the suspects being British Muslims and Pakistanis, anti-Muslim feeling is likely to spread. The authorities acted after they received information of an imminent wave of attacks targeting three transatlantic aircraft, to be conducted with liquid explosives, judged by security experts to be extremely effective, which were to be taken on board in hand luggage, possibly in the form of bottles of fizzy drinks, with the detonators hidden in electronic equipment. The exact time of the attacks was never discovered, but investigators thought they were imminent, predicting that they would take place by Saturday or Sunday. As a result some of the restrictions imposed last Thursday were very severe: a ban was placed on liquids with the exception of verified prescribed medicines in no larger an amount than is needed for the flight; baby food, including milk, were only allowed if tasted by the passenger accompanying the child; electric items, pushchairs, wheelchairs and walking aids were thoroughly X-rayed; personal searches became more frequent, and passengers boarding flights to the US were searched twice. The result was longer queues, delays, cancellations (including 44 at Heathrow, 33 at Gatwick and 16 at Stansted) and much confusion. Since then, 24 suspects were arrested in Birmingham, High Wycombe and east London following an extensive surveillance operation. Some have been released without charge, while detectives continue searching for evidence in woods near High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire. Seven men arrested in the cities of Lahore and Karachi in Pakistan, two of whom are British nationals of Pakistani origin, are said to have provided crucial information about the plot. In the UK police are allowed to question suspects for up to 28 days from the date of their arrest before deciding to charge them. Currently the Metropolitan Police has been granted warrants to further detain suspects until next Wednesday. According to Reid, it is best to keep the UK at the highest level of alert for now -- with regular reviews to ensure safety, since developments could quickly result in a change to a substantial or strong possibility of attack, or else, as it is hoped, to a "moderate" or "low" threat -- which would mean respectively that, while possible, an attack is not likely, or else completely unlikely. Transatlantic flights have been uneventful except for one British Airways (BA) plane with 217 passengers on board, which headed back to Heathrow on Sunday after a mobile phone was heard ringing at the back and none of the passengers claimed ownership of the phone. In its apology, BA insisted that safety was its "number one priority" no matter what inconvenience it might have to cause.
