The strategy was a success as the FBI and Abdulmutallab’s family have been communicating with the alleged bomber for a week, according to an Obama administration official who asked to remain anonymous.

In early January, two FBI agents went to Nigeria to meet with Abdulmutallab’s family. The agents flew back to the US on 17 January with the family and got the cooperation they wanted from the suspect, according to Chip Reid, the White House correspondent of CBS. However, officials declined to name the family members involved or reveal if the father was part of the investigation. They also did not say whether the family is still in the US.

The official said that giving Abdulmutallab his Miranda rights did not interfere in getting his cooperation. Various law enforcement and intelligence professionals believed that he was likely to cooperate more with civilian investigators than the military.

Useful intelligence has been provided by Abdulmutallab, according to the official. Sources added that ‘solid leads’ have been provided as well, but none of them are specific. Though Abdulmutallab has been giving information, the most urgent questions have yet to be answered.

FBI Director Robert Mueller spoke to Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on Tuesday, saying that the suspect did speak with the FBI after his arrest on Christmas Day until he was taken to surgery for leg burns. But after the surgery, the suspect told the FBI that he would no longer answer further questions. The suspect was then given his Miranda rights after his statement was made clear to the agents.

Republicans, however, criticised the Obama administration for failing to handle the terror attempt, and former Vice President Dick Cheney commented that Obama is pretending that America is not at war.

Brennan, as the counterterrorism adviser of Obama, stopped short of calling Cheney a liar, saying: “Either the vice president is wilfully mischaracterising this president’s position, both in terms of language he uses and the actions he’s taken, or he’s ignorant of the facts”.

Republican Sen. Jim DeMint commented that the country has not been too focussed on security concerns. “[Obama's] been completely distracted by other things … and he is not focused on building security and intelligence apparatus of our country”, he said during CNN’s ‘State of the Union’.

Thomas Kean, the former chairman of the 9/11 Commission, also spoke of the President being distracted due to domestic issues, such as health care and the economy.

But the White House responded to the criticisms by saying that the administration will continue to manage priorities such as health care and economic reforms, and at the same time deal with the al Qaeda issue.

“I think he has done exceedingly well, although as one who has been there for 50 years now, he is pushing himself too hard”, said Sen. Daniel Inouye said of Obama.

John Brennan, the assistant to the president for homeland security and counterterrorism, spoke on ‘State of the Union’ on CNN and emphasized the difference between the failed Christmas Day terror plot and the 11 September 2001 attack.

“It’s not like 9/11″, he said, stating that the “system didn’t work as it should have” because of “lapses” and “human error”.

“There wasn’t an effort to try to conceal information”, said Brennan.

“There is no smoking gun piece of intelligence out there”, he added, referring to the failed bombing of an airplane by a Nigerian who stored an explosive device in his underwear.

The Transportation Security Administration, meanwhile, said international and domestic air carriers will be implementing new security protocols that will take effect on Monday for flights headed to the United States.

US authorities had been warned by the suspect’s father about his son’s involvement with Islamic extremists, but for Brennan, “bits and pieces” of information such as these had not been pieced together to track the suspect. Former New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean said the US intelligence network already had the information, but failed to analyse and share it.

With the new security protocol, an individual heading to the United States and “travelling from or through nations that are state sponsors of terrorism or other countries of interest will be required to go through enhanced screening”, the TSA said in a statement.