Myanmar Police Force has sought information from Interpol about the international terrorist group al-Qaeda following its recent threat to launch attacks in South Asia and Myanmar, Police Colonel Aung Htay Myint of the MPF's Transnational Crime Department said on September 16.
"Yesterday we asked Interpol for information about the news was al-Qaeda was planning to launch terrorist operations in Myanmar; we asked about the group's movements," Pol Col Aung Htay Myint told Mizzima, referring to the international police organisation headquartered in Lyon, France.
The request follows a video statement broadcast on September 3 in which al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri said the terrorist organisation planned to "wage jihad" in India, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Police Colonel Oakkar Ko of the Aviation Police Department told Mizzima on September 16 he wanted to assure the public that enough security personnel were on duty to monitor increased passenger traffic at the nation's airports.
Security checks on departing passengers were noticeably tightened at Yangon International Airport some weeks ago, before al-Zawahiri issued the threat.
