Passenger ignites firecrackers on an Amsterdam-Detroit flight

A passenger headed to Detroit from Amsterdam on a Delta Airlines flight Friday ignited firecrackers upon landing in the Motor City, sending at least one person to the hospital.

An emergency was declared aboard the flight, operated as Northwest flight 253, according to a Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson. Several people were hurt and one person was admitted to the University of Michigan Medical Center at Ann Arbor, hospital spokeswoman Tracy Justice said.

Justice declined to comment on the condition or gender of the patient. Source: foxnews.

Update1 :

The male passenger who ignited the firecrackers is possibly linked to terrorist organization Al Qaeda , Fox News confirmed. The man is believed to be Nigerian.

The suspect, who ABC reported suffered second-degree burns, told federal investigators he was connected to Al Qaeda, though authorities are questioning the veracity of that statement, Fox News confirmed.

Update 2: “This was not a firecracker,”

The male passenge tried to detonate an explosive device that was strapped to his leg and later told investigators that he was trying to blow up the plane and had affiliations with al Qaeda, according to a senior U.S. official.

The passenger was identified by authorities as Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian national, according to Rep. Peter King, a New York Republican who is the ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee. The device was technologically advanced and potentially devastating, Mr. King said. “This was not a firecracker,” he said.

Update 3 :

The White House declared the incident “an attempted act of terrorism.”

In London, the Metropolitan Police said that officials were working with the American authorities to conduct searches on a number of apartments in central London, where the suspect, identified as Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, might have lived. He is believed to be an engineering student at University College London, one of Britain’s top universities.

The incident is likely to lead to heightened security in the US during the busy holiday season.

Update 4 :

The Nigerian government says it has launched its own investigation into the apparent attempt by a Nigerian man to ignite an explosive device aboard an international flight bound for Detroit.