Al-Qaeda has claimed it was responsible for the parcel bombs intercepted in the UK and Dubai last week as well as bringing down a United Parcel Service cargo aircraft that crashed on September 3 after an onboard fire. Al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), who has previously claimed responsibility for the Christmas Day underpants foiled bomb plot, says it has now struck three blows to US aircraft in one year. In response the US military have indicated it will provide more support through training of Yemeni forces to help them in the fight against terrorists.
The United Arab Emirates civil aviation authority has stated that thorough analysis of the digital flight data recorder deduced the crash of the UPS plane in September was not the result of an explosion but they have not been able to determine the exact cause of the onboard fire.