Obama blames al-Qaida for failed terror attack

President Barack Obama today blamed al-Qaida for an attempted Christmas Day terrorist attack.

The botched attack prompted a top-to-bottom review of how the US intelligence agencies failed to prevent the incident aboard a Detroit-bound plane.

In his most direct public language to date, the president described the path through Yemen of 23-year-old Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian accused of trying to destroy Northwest Flight 253.

The president also emphasised that the United States would continue its partnerships with friendly countries – citing Yemen, in particular – to fight terrorists and extremist groups around the globe.

Obama said in his weekly radio and internet address that the White House released today as the president spent his holidays in Hawaii: “We’re learning more about the suspect.”