Terror suspects pinched in Copenhagen

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Sept. 5 (UPI) -- Eight men suspected of having al-Qaida ties and plotting bomb attacks are in custody in Denmark.

Investigators in Copenhagen said the men represented an imminent threat and their arrest resulted from international cooperation over several months, The New York Times reported Wednesday. Six suspects are Danish citizens but have Afghan, Pakistani, Somali or Turkish backgrounds, officials said. Some of them had connections to "high-ranking" al-Qaida members, according to Jakob Scharf, director of the Danish intelligence service.

The nature of the terror cell's specific targets or the countries they intended to attack were not disclosed by the investigators, the Times said.

A senior European intelligence official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the newspaper members of the group "started to get different chemicals, which you can use for the making of explosives.

“We believe this was a serious situation,” he added.

The unnamed official said the suspects had probably planned to carry out attacks in Denmark, which has drawn Muslim fury since 2005, when a Danish newspaper, published cartoons lampooning the Prophet Muhammad.