**The Nigerian man accused of attempting to detonate a bomb on a Detroit-bound plane on Christmas Day is to make his first court appearance in the US.**It will be determined whether Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, charged with the attempted murder of 290 people and five other counts, should stay in custody.
President Barack Obama has announced new terrorist watch list guidelines and other security upgrades.
While criticising “systemic” failings, he said: “The buck stops with me.”
The US had failed to “connect and understand” intelligence received prior to the failed attack on the airliner, he added, delivering a televised statement from the White House on Thursday.
He announced that he was ordering an immediate strengthening of the terrorist watch list. Information on security risks would be distributed more widely and analysis of that information would be improved.
Also among more than a dozen new measures were improved screening technology at US airports, the recruitment of hundreds more air marshals and a review of the issuing of US visas.
Plea opportunity
Mr Abdulmutallab is due to appear in a federal court in Detroit at 1400 local time (1900 GMT) for his arraignment.
THE CHARGES
- Attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction
- Attempted murder within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the US
- Wilful attempt to destroy and wreck an aircraft
- Wilfully placing a destructive device in or near an aircraft which was likely to endanger the safety of the aircraft
- Two counts of possession of a firearm, ie the bomb, in furtherance of violent crime
Profile: Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab
The charges will be read and he will have an opportunity to enter a plea.
Experts say that, with so much evidence against the suspect, his defence team has little room for manoeuvre.
It may seek mental health tests or a plea deal.
Mr Abdulmutallab faces life imprisonment on the charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction.
He allegedly tried to detonate a device concealed in his underwear on Northwest Flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit.
The plane landed safely after passengers and crew overpowered him.
Information ‘scattered’
The alleged bombing attempt has prompted strong criticism of airport security and US intelligence services.
Announcing the conclusions of an urgent White House review, Mr Obama said the US government had “had the information scattered throughout the system to potentially uncover this plot and disrupt the attack”.
Mr Abdulmutallab’s name was on a US database of about 550,000 suspected terrorists but not on a list that would have subjected him to additional security screening or kept him from boarding the flight from Amsterdam to Detroit.
The report revealed that a misspelling of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’s name had led the state department to believe that he did not have a valid US visa - which he did.
Speaking after Mr Obama, US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said hundreds of more sophisticated screening scanners would be deployed at US airports.
Foreign airports would also be encouraged to overhaul and strengthen their equipment and procedures, she added.