BRITAIN: A top-level police investigation was under way last night after a secret dossier containing counter-terror plans for Heathrow Airport was found abandoned beside a road.
The British Home Secretary, Mr David Blunkett, described the disappearance of the papers, which were found near a petrol station close to the airport's perimeter fence, as "very bad". The document, which Mr Blunkett said was genuine, was discovered by a motorist "flapping at the roadside", and handed to the Sun newspaper.
It reportedly shows 62 sites at the airport where al-Qaeda is most likely to launch anti-aircraft missile strikes, and includes key facts about escape routes, evacuation plans and road closures.
The Liberal Democrats said it was an embarrassment for the government. Terrorism experts warned that the dossier could be very dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands.