The jailed ringleader of a plot to kill thousands of people by bombing up to ten commercial airliners in mid-flight has hailed the Taliban’s “greatest victory” over troops in Afghanistan.

Al-Qaeda militants in Somalia have threatened to mount attacks aimed at forcing Kenyan troops to retreat from the country.

Radical Islamists and suspected al-Qaeda members have been celebrating news of the release of Abu Qatada in messages posted online.

New images show the ringleader of a failed plot to bomb the London Stock Exchange in the company of the militant Islamic preacher Anjem Choudary.

A recording of an international conference call about computer hacking involving FBI officials and Metropolitan Police officers has been leaked on the Web – by the hackers they are investigating.