The CIA thwarted a plot by al Qaedas affiliate in Yemen to destroy a U.S.-bound airliner using a bomb with a new design, a U.S. counter-terrorism official tells CBS News.
Officials deny there was ever any immediate threat to the public.U.S. officials say the plot involved an upgrade of the underwear bomb that failed to detonate aboard a jetliner over Detroit on Christmas 2009. This new bomb was also built to be used in a passengers underwear but contained a more refined detonation system, the AP reported.
