DHS warns airlines of shoe bomb threat

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is warning airlines to be on the lookout for terrorists potentially targeting U.S. flights with shoe bombs.

NBC News on Wednesday reported that federal officials recently received a credible warning of threats to “attack passenger jets using explosives concealed in shoes.”

{mosads}A DHS official confirmed to The Hill that a warning was issued based on intelligence reports.

“Out of an abundance of caution, DHS regularly shares relevant information with domestic and international partners about relevant threat information as we work to meet our mission of keeping the traveling public safe,” the official said in a statement.

“These types of regular communications are part of that important priority. Our security apparatus includes a number of measures, both seen and unseen, informed by the latest intelligence and as always DHS continue[s] to adjust security measures to fit an ever evolving threat environment.”

NBC said airlines have been told to give extra scrutiny to flights bound for the United States and to swab passengers’ shoes for traces of explosives. 

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has required most airlines passengers to remove their shoes at airport security checkpoints for more than a decade. That requirement was a response to the failed attempt by Richard Reid to detonate explosives hidden in his shoes during a flight in December 2001. 

The TSA is overseen by the Homeland Security Department.