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Osama bin Laden Cigarette Lighters
September 11, 2002
A cigarette lighter depicting the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center along with a bust of Osama bin Laden is seen in these photos distributed by the Israeli Government Press Office. These lighters, headed for a Palestinian dealer in the Gaza Strip, were intercepted by customs authorities in June 2002. The shipping container in which they were found also contained hundreds of kilograms of weapons, ammunition, telescopic viewfinders, and night vision equipment.
Pressing the switch on the lighter's base creates a large flame from Bin Laden's head. The weapons and the rest of the equipment was confiscated by customs authority and transferred to the Israeli security forces. As the lighters do not have military use, it is unclear what should be done with them and, as such, they are still at the customs authority warehouse.
An investigation has revealed that the shipment left Taiwan in June disguised as a donation of children's toys and the shipment documents were signed by an Islamic charity organization. In its journey, the shipment passed through an Arab country that has diplomatic relations with Israel. There, the suspicion is, the toy shipment was replaced with the shipment that eventually arrived at the Israeli port. Security officials declined to give the name of this Arab country, due to the diplomatic sensitivity of this issue.
Terrorism101 Home Page : Articles & Links : Osama bin Laden Cigarette Lighters
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