Were Terrorists on Board?

Shortly after Flight 447 vanished into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all 228 aboard, experts considered a deadly storm the likely cause. But now the Christian Science Monitor reports that French news sources say two passengers' names appear on list of Al-Qaeda suspects. Experts are quick to caution that terror lists are notorious for being prone to mistakes. Nevertheless, several details of the incident will no doubt be fodder for conspiracy theorists: A pilot in the same area reportedly saw "A bright white flash" in the sky—indicating an explosion in midair—and Air France has said that it received a bomb threat in Argentina a mere four days before the incident. However, no terrorist group has stepped forward to claim responsibility, and intelligence organizations have not noticed any of the familiar signs from terrorist groups that appear in the lead-up and aftermath of an attack. The New York Times and The Washington Post have mostly dismissed the terrorist theory today—meaning, of course, that The Weekly Standard now supports it.