Who Is America's Newest Hero? Who Helped Stop The Terror Attack On Northwest Flight 253? UDATE: The Hero Is Dutch - Jasper Schuringa

While the entire country today is abuzz with talk of the attempted al Qaeda terror attack on Northwest Flight 253, my question is simply....Who is the hero who lept across seats and people to not only restrain the terrorist but also help put out the explosion/fire with his body?

Talk about drama - this is almost deja vu of military heroics when one soldier/Marine jumps on top of a live grenade in order to save his fellow soldiers/Marines. But of course, it's been about 18 hours since the attack and not a word on the identity of the hero - it's my guess that the MSM is too busy trying to figure out if the Nigerian terrorist's rights were violated. I did find this at Fox News:

Smith said one passenger, sitting opposite the man, climbed over passengers, went across the aisle and tried to restrain the man, who officials say was trying to ignite an explosive device. The heroic passenger appeared to have been burned.

Obviously, this has conjured up new memories of "Let's Roll!" And at the same time, it brings up the point that, when it comes down to the nitty gritty, we are on our own people when it comes to protecting ourselves. The Department of Homeland Security is dealing today with a guy that was on the "no fly list" yet there he was flying away and trying to kill 278 people on a flight over American soil. There were no air marshalls on board. What would have happened if this heroic effort, by a guy who paid money out of his own pocket to fly on that plane, hadn't seized the situation and acted?

One final note on this serious terror attack - welcome to the real world, Barack Hussein Obama. What Obama is going to find out is this....no matter what the Communist-in-charge has planned for further depletion of our personal liberties....no matter how badly he wants a healthcare reform bill or a cap and tax bill or an immigration amnesty bill or he wants to try and create and save jobs to save the economy, he's going to find out what George W. Bush found out...that the terrorists of the world are going to be there each and every day to fuck up his plans. They never really go away. And the distractions mount as time goes by.

Yeah, Barry....welcome to the real world. Not only are the islamic terrorists not buying into your plan of hugging them and telling them they are okay...they are continuing to attempt to kill the American people who you are charged with protecting.

UPDATE:

We have the name of the hero from
CBS News. His name is Jasper Schuringa and he's from The
Netherlands. Here's the account of his efforts from the CBS post:

Schuringa told CNN he heard a sound similar to a firecracker as the
Detroit-bound flight was preparing to land. After seeing smoke, he noticed a
burning object between Abdulmutallab's legs. "I pulled the object from him
and
tried to extinguish the fire with my hands and threw it away," Schuringa
told
CNN. Schuringa said his hands were "pretty burned" after incident, but
said the
injuries were minor. "I am fine. I am shaken up. I am happy to be
here."
Schuringa said he stripped off the suspect's clothes to make sure he
didn't have
any more explosives on him and helped a crew member handcuff
him. He described
Abdulmutallab as "was staring into nothing" following the
thwarted
attempt.

And here's the account from CNN:

Schuringa said he heard a big bang that sounded like a firecracker going
off. He told CNN that he was the one who was able to subdue Abdulmutallab. CNN
was not able to independently confirm Schuringa's account.
Schuringa said
someone started yelling: "Fire! Fire!"
Then there was smoke. That's when
Schuringa said he knew something was terribly wrong.
When he noticed that
Abdulmutallab was not moving, he grew suspect. He jumped over the passenger next
to him and lunged over Abdulmutallab's seat.
Schuringa said he saw that
Abdulmutallab had his pants open and he was holding a burning object between his
legs.
"I pulled the object from him and tried to extinguish the fire with my
hands and threw it away," Schuringa said.
He said he managed to pull an
object tucked between Abdulmutallab's legs.
"Water! Water," Schuringa
screamed. He heard fire extinguishers as he pulled Abdulmutallab out of his seat
and dragged him to the front of the plane.
Schuringa said Abdulmutallab
seemed dazed. "He was staring into nothing."
Schuringa said he stripped off
Abdulmutallab's clothes to make sure he did not have other explosives on his
body. A crew member helped handcuff him.
He said other passengers applauded
as he walked back to his own seat.
"My hands are pretty burned. I am fine,"
he said. "I am shaken up. I am happy to be here."

America's newest hero is a Dutchman but that can't surprise any of the American troops in Afghanistan who have seen the Dutch shoulder more than their weight in the efforts to kill the Taliban. My hat is off to you, Mr. Schuringa. Well done.

Passengers Help Stop Possible Terror Attack On Detroit Bound Plane


ROMULUS, Mich. — An attempted terrorist attack on a Christmas Day flight began with a pop and a puff of smoke — sending passengers scrambling to subdue a Nigerian man who claimed to be acting on orders from Al Qaeda to blow up the airliner, officials and travelers said.
The commotion began as Northwest Airlines Flight 253, carrying 278 passengers and 11 crew members from Amsterdam, prepared to land in Detroit just before noon Friday. Travelers said they smelled smoke, saw a glow, and heard what sounded like firecrackers.
"It sounded like a firecracker in a pillowcase," said Peter Smith, a passenger from the Netherlands. "First there was a pop, and then (there) was smoke."
Smith said one passenger, sitting opposite the man, climbed over passengers, went across the aisle and tried to restrain the man, who officials say was trying to ignite an explosive device. The heroic passenger appeared to have been burned.
Afterward, the suspect was taken to a front-row seat with his pants cut off and his legs burned. Multiple law enforcement officials also said the man appeared badly burned on his legs, indicating the explosive was strapped there. The components were apparently mixed in-flight and included a powdery substance, multiple law enforcement and counterterrorism officials said.

The White House said it believed it was an attempted act of terrorism and stricter security measures were quickly imposed on airline travel. Dutch anti-terrorism authorities said the U.S. has asked all airlines to take extra precautions on flights worldwide that are bound for the United States.
The incident was reminiscent of Richard Reid, who tried to destroy a trans-Atlantic flight in 2001 with explosives hidden in his shoes, but was subdued by other passengers.
Multiple law enforcement officials identified the suspect in Friday's attempted attack as Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab. He was described as Nigerian.
One law enforcement official said the man claimed to have been instructed by Al Qaeda to detonate the plane over U.S. soil, but other law enforcement officials cautioned that such claims could not be verified immediately, and said the man may have been acting independently — inspired but not specifically trained or ordered by terror groups.
All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing.
Intelligence and anti-terrorism officials in Yemen said they were investigating claims by the suspect that he picked up the explosive device and instructions on how to use it in that country. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media.
The man was being questioned Friday evening. An intelligence official said he was being held and treated in an Ann Arbor, Michigan, hospital. The hospital said one passenger from the flight was taken to the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, but referred all inquiries to the FBI.
Melinda Dennis, who was seated in the front row of the plane, said the man involved was brought to the front row and seated near her. She said his legs appeared to be badly burned and his pants were cut off. She said he was taken off the plane handcuffed to a stretcher.
One law enforcement official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said Mutallab's name had surfaced earlier on at least one U.S. intelligence database, but he was not on a watch list or a no-fly list.
The suspect boarded in Nigeria and went through Amsterdam en route to Detroit, Peter King, the ranking Republican member of the House Homeland Security Committee, told CNN. A spokeswoman for police at the Schiphol airport in Amsterdam declined comment about the case or about security procedures at the airport for Flight 253.
Dutch airline KLM says the connection in Amsterdam from Lagos, Nigeria, to Detroit involves a change in carrier and a change in aircraft.
Schiphol airport, one of Europe's busiest with a heavy load of transit passengers from Africa and Asia to North America, strictly enforces European security regulations including only allowing small amounts of liquid in hand luggage that must be placed inside clear plastic bags. rjam Snoerwang.
A spokesman for the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Akin Olukunle, said all passengers and their luggage are screened before boarding international flights. He also said the airport in Lagos cleared a U.S. Transportation Security Administration audit in November.
"We had a pass mark," Olukunle said. "We actually are up to standards in all senses."
Nigeria's information minister, Dora Akunyili, condemned the attempted bombing. She said the government has opened its own investigation into the suspect and will work with U.S. authorities.
"We state very clearly that as a nation we abhor all forms of violence," Akunyili said in a statement issued Saturday.
London's Metropolitan Police also was working with U.S. officials, a spokeswoman said, and searches were being conducted in that city. The spokeswoman would not provide additional details, including what connection the suspect had to London or what was being searched. She spoke on condition of anonymity in line with department policy.
Delta Air Lines Inc., which acquired Northwest last year, said a passenger caused a disturbance, was subdued, and the crew requested that law enforcement officials meet the flight.
Passenger Syed Jafri, a U.S. citizen who had flown from the United Arab Emirates, said the incident occurred during the plane's descent. Jafri said he was seated three rows behind the passenger and said he saw a glow, and noticed a smoke smell. Then, he said, "a young man behind me jumped on him."
"Next thing you know, there was a lot of panic," he said.
Federal officials said there would be heightened security for both domestic and international flights at airports across the country, but the intensified levels would likely be "layered," differing from location to location depending on alerts, security concerns and other factors.
Passengers can expect to see heightened screening, more bomb-sniffing dog and officer units and behavioral-detection specialists at some airports, but there will also be unspecified less visible precautions as well, officials said.
The FBI and the Homeland Security Department issued an intelligence note on Nov. 20 about the threat picture for the holiday season, which was obtained by The Associated Press. At the time, officials said they had no specific information about attack plans by Al Qaeda or other terrorist groups.
President Barack Obama was notified of the incident and discussed it with security officials, the White House said. Officials said he is monitoring the situation and receiving regular updates from his vacation spot in Hawaii.