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police, the man claimed Chishti said it was a way to get rid of the Christians. • The man's testimony only surfaced more than two weeks after the girl was originally arrested, raising questions about why he did not come forward sooner. • ___
Are hijackings history? Seizures of aircraft on the wane even before post-9/11 security boost
• AMSTERDAM (AP) -- It was once the nightmare of air travelers the world over: a passenger jet parked in a remote corner of an airport surrounded by armed police and ambulances. • The frightening scene that played out this past week at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport turned out to be a false alarm. But it revived memories of an aviation era when hijackings were more common than in the post-9/11 world of ultra-tight security checks at airport gates, air marshals on flights and reinforced cockpit doors. • Figures compiled by the International Civil Aviation Organization show seven "unlawful seizures" of planes in 2001, the year of the al-Qaida attacks on the United States. The highest number in any year since was five in 2009. The group recorded no airliner seizures in 2010 or 2011. • Despite the drop, authorities are far from complacent and attempted attacks continue -- the group showed acts including sabotage attempts rising from just two in 2005 to 14 in 2009 before dropping off sharply to three in 2011. • Jim Marriott, chief of the organization's Aviation Security Branch, said the group is organizing a high-level conference next week aimed at further boosting security.
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